Heres why Ingwe are roaring to the top again

Heres why Ingwe are roaring to the top again

Passion, good scouting and belief is the driving force behind the recent success at AFC Leopards, club co-chairman Mathews Opwora has declared.

Last Sunday Ingwe brought to a halt champions and archrivals Gor Mahia’s 17-month unbeaten run in the SportPesa Premier League with a 1-0 win at Safaricom Stadium, Kasarani to go top of the table on 10 points.

“We called for trials and some who came were from school and therefore, we got the best talent free from corruption compared to what used to happen previously at the club. We then gave them a good coach and technical bench and we are happy with the way things are going,” Opwora told.

Ingwe faced a massive exodus of players during the transfer window with most of them joining premier league rivals when the club was facing a crippling cash crunch peppered by close fought wrangles for the leadership.

Having finished seventh last season the 13-time domestic top flight champions engaged in massive recruitment to fill the huge gaps that were left and their focus was in schools and grassroots football.

“When we signed them, passion for the club came first before money. Most had the love for the club and having found the right players, we had to look for sponsors and that’s when SportsPesa came on board and everything is running smoothly at the club,” Opwora who co-chairs the team with Dan Mule after their dispute over control of the team went to the Sports Tribunal narrated.

Last season, the club made headline fodder for players boycotting training due to lack of payment and the management has taken steps to mitigate against such embarrassing episodes where their staff turned to the media to express their grievances.

“We also harmonizes the player’s salaries to what we can afford to pay even during hard times and we agreed with individual players. We also gave them a lot of winning allowances which they are paid immediately after the match has ended,” the co-chairman disclosed.

-New leadership-

AFC Leopards SC players pose before their Mashemeji Derby with Gor Mahia FC during their SportPesa Premier League match at the Safaricom stadium Kasarani on March 06, 2016. Photo/Stafford Ondego/www.sportpicha.com
AFC Leopards SC players pose before their Mashemeji Derby with Gor Mahia FC during their SportPesa Premier League match at the Safaricom stadium Kasarani on March 06, 2016. Photo/Stafford Ondego/www.sportpicha.com

The team’s technical bench under the leadership of new head coach, Ivan Minnaert, has been greatly involved in building of the team with former club captain, Nickolas Muyoti and immediate former coach Jan Koops who is now in charge of the clubs scouting projects heavily involved in the scouting mission and putting the current squad together.

“They clubs stability from the recent sponsorship has brought peace in the players’ minds because they are guaranteed salaries and allowances at the end of the month and that makes training sessions easy and relaxing because the players are working hard under a peaceful environment,” Muyoti said in explaining why the roar from the Den has been heard across the land.

“We wanted players who could come and play under the conditions that were there by that time and we had to release those who were not willing to stay and dedicate the energy to the team. Luckily enough we got them and they are proving to the fans they are worthy to wear the leopard’s skin,” the club legend asserted

The appointment of the new Belgian coach who has masterminded two back-to-back victories for the clubs is something Muyoti thinks will restore the club’s lost glory.

“Then new coach has brought a lot of professionalism in the team, the players and the technical bench and the clubs officials respect his decisions and that brings desire to win matches with a lot of determination.

“The fans too have stood with us in good times and bad times and we feel loved any time we are on the pitch hence this motivates us to win for them,” the former club captain held as the future at the Den continues to look ever brighter.

Leopards Chemelil Sugar in their next match and having won two in a row under his stewardship coach Minnaert believes Ingwe can only get better as time goes by

“The group wants to go far, they want to win every time they play but we have to improve in some departments of our team game by game and keep fighting like warriors,” he thundered.

Tags:

AFC Leopards Nicholas Muyoti Ivan Minnaert Jan Coops Matthews Opwora SportPesa Premier League

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