Nandwa sends Were,Omondi packing

By Omondi Onyatta

Harambee Stars wingers Paul Were and Kevin Omondi have been expelled from the team’s camp in Uganda for portraying untoward behaviour. The two players have been part of the Kenyan team that is participating in the ongoing CECAFA Championships in Uganda.

According to Coach James Nandwa, the two players violated his instructions. “The players have been expelled from the camp and will report back to Kenya,” Nandwa said.

More trouble awaits the duo that has also been suspended indefinitely from national team duties. Sources from the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) indicate that the two players could face sanctions at the club level.

Were and Omondi, who turn out for AFC Leopards and Gor Mahia respectively, were instrumental in Kenya’s 2-0 defeat of South Sudan on Tuesday.

Word has it that the two were expelled for leaving camp for a night of partying after the match against the instructions of the tactician. This incident has prompted FKF to revise the way it disburses players’ salaries. “From now on players will be paid after returning to the country,” FKF Chairman Sam Nyamweya said.

This is the first disciplinary cases involving Omondi, who was making a return to the national team set-up after a long hiatus. For Were, this is his third time to have rubbed soccer administrators the wrong way. The winger has had past run-ins with national under-20 coach Vincent Ombija and former Harambee Stars tactician Francis Kimanzi.

First published in November 2012