Ngala: Keroche-Gor partnership talks at advanced stage

Naivasha based Keroche Breweries and record Kenyan Premier League champions Gor Mahia are in talks over a possible partnership deal.

Club deputy secretary general Ronald Ngala says  the talks are at an advanced stage.

‘’Yes, we are in talks but so far we have not made any big progress. The talks are at an advanced stage and we shall make the outcome of the deal public once we are done,” said Ngala.

The Brewers on Saturday donated Sh1 million to Gor prior to the Sunday’s CAF Champions League match against Algeria’s USM Alger in which K’Ogalo was eliminated after a 2-0 loss to bow out 6-1 on aggregate.

Tellingly, the brewers’ banners were plastered all over the Kasarani Stadium during the match, an indication that a deal was in the offing.

This comes barely a day after their former sponsor Sportpesa closed shop in Kenya denting any slim hope of making a comeback to the sports sponsorship in the country.

The betting firm indicated that they did not come to an amicable conclusion with the Betting Control and Licensing Board over possible reinstatement of their betting license that had been earlier revoked.

Should Keroche Breweries come on board, part of Gor Mahia’s money woes will be temporarily solved.

The team has been walking a tight financial rope with payment of player salaries and bonuses delaying.

K’Ogalo are still in dire need of money after being dropped to the CAF Confederations level following their defeat on Sunday by the Algerian giants. They will need to travel a lot as they seek to get a ticket to the CAF Confederations group stages.

The club deputy secretary general Ngala said he is optimistic the deal will be sealed.

‘’Running a club is all about money. We need to pay salaries, hire stadia and also pay for accommodation of players in our away matches. We are hopeful the deal will be sealed and this will be a step ahead for us.”

Gor introduced e-ticketing for their home matches this season but this has not picked up well. Chairman Ambrose Rachier, in a recent interview with Ramogi FM said the club was forced to cancel Kisumu’s Moi stadium as their home ground following massive corruption in gate collections.

The club boss blamed the menace on corrupt stewards who, according to him, accept bribes as little as Sh50 to assist fans access the stadia.

The story of Gor financial woes is a serious menace that needs to be addressed and perhaps they need to borrow a leaf from successful clubs from the region.