Sports
EMMANUEL LUBEMBE
After five rings Emman picks up his phone and sounds truly happy to hear my voice. He engages me in a discussion on the recently concluded Safari Sevens tournament and for a moment I forget my reason for calling. Such is the character of Emmanuel Lubembe; engaging and friendly. Read more here
A TRIBUTE TO THE ROCK OF KENYAN RUGBY
Thirty years since its inception, Mwamba Rugby Football Club continues to prove its commitment to creating milestones in Kenyan rugby and has surmounted great odds to emerge as one of the top clubs in the local league.
The word “mwamba” is Kiswahili for “rock”, which signifies stability, firmness and dependability; the precise words that describe Mwamba R.F.C today; stability in its great performance in the local leagues, firmness in its desire to nurture local talent, dependability to the dreams of its founding fathers, its fans and its future. Indeed, the members of this club exhibit a strong spirit to play the game of rugby and while at it, an unyielding desire to outclass every other club in the league.
Mwamba R.F.C. has its home at the Railways Club on Uhuru Highway which lies adjacent to Uhuru Park. Sitting at the stands, one has a breath-taking view of the city centre, which for a few moments takes your attention away from the dilapidated rugby pitch. The pitch at the Railway Club doubles as a football pitch for other clubs and as such, the playing surface leaves a lot to be desired. The try posts lean over and have for several years now, and the few spectator stands are slowly falling apart. Players train under harsh conditions that they have no control over. The place they call home is not really theirs and they struggle to pay their rent. The facilities are not much to speak of.
This is what makes the story of Mwamba R.F.C that more remarkable. Thirty years ago, in 1978, its founding fathers formed the club with an aim to embed indigenous Africans into the game of rugby. Their black shirts were a testament to the introduction of the game to the Africans and their name, Mwamba, a declaration of their intention to stand steadfast in the face of any adversary. Today, although the face of the adversary has changed from clubs of the old order to difficult economic times, the vision of Mwamba is the same-to create a solid foundation for players to prove their worth and to play a game that they love.
It could successfully be argued that Mwamba R.F.C players form the backbone of the national rugby teams. They are a force to reckon with in the local leagues and have a tendency to cause upsets in both the fifteens and sevens versions of the game. They tackle each game with the same intensity, never underestimating an opponent and treating each game situation as an opportunity to prove their significance. And at the end of each match day, win or lose, they stamp their authority on Kenyan rugby.
Having set new standards in men’s rugby, Mwamba R.F.C went a step further and formed a women’s side, the 
first competitive women’s club in the country, and aptly called them the Mwamba Invaders. Whether it meant playing their male counter parts, or playing amongst themselves, the women were keen on invading the rugby scene with a new brand of rugby; Kenyan women’s rugby. They have beaten all odds and grown from strength to strength, and from a handful of women who trained at the Railway Club grounds when they could get time away from other sports like hockey and basket ball, Mwamba Invaders now boasts close to forty active and committed players. The women are a class above other women’s rugby teams in the country. They naturally form the bulk of the women’s national rugby team in both the fifteens and the sevens versions of the game and recently won the women’s tournament at the 2008 Safari Sevens.
It is beyond anyone’s wildest imagination what leaps and bounds this team will make in the coming years. They have already made it clear that there is no turning back. After all, now that they have found the winning formula; resilience and dedication from leaders and focus from players, all there is to look forward to is even more success. Truly, if there exist rugby players in Kenya who still play this game at club level for the sheer love of the game and not for image association or club perks, then it is the men and women at Mwamba. It is the heart of these players that keeps Mwamba Rugby Football Club as solid as a rock.
WEEKLY RAMBLE
I do not agree with the Rugby Kenya blog argument on the poor maintenance of the rugby pitch at the Rugby Football Union of East Africa headquarters, postponement of games due to unavailability of players and suspension of league matches during the national teams international fixtures.
It is true that the rugby pitch that hosted the Safari Sevens was in fantastic condition. This came about partly as a result of the pitch being closed to the public beginning soon after the conclusion of the Rugby Super Series in early April. There was also constant maintenance that included watering of the pitch over-night as well as use of manure. This meant that everyone who used the pitch, which includes the mini-rugby boys and girls, the veterans who play touch rugby and even Kenya Harlequins, could not use it. The RFUEA grounds double as the home ground of Kenya Harlequins R.F.C. and anyone who follows any type of sport will appreciate the significance of having a home ground, and using it. We can therefore only imagine the sacrifice it took for the club to agree to absolutely no use of the grounds until after Safari Sevens was over three months later.
Now that Safari Sevens is over, the pitch will not be left to deteriorate, but rather, normal use of the pitch will resume, and with it will come the expected wear and tear which even regular maintenance by the grounds men on site can not prevent.
The obvious solution to this is to have a world class pitch for the sole purpose of hosting major local and international fixtures. This would entail relocation of either Kenya Harlequins R.F.C or the Rugby Football Union of East Africa Headquarters, or in the alternative development of the adjacent grounds currently used as a parking area to accommodate a second pitch so that one pitch can be used on an every day basis while the other is maintained for the major local and international fixtures. This of course requires funds and I cannot speak for the Union in terms of what revenue it earns and how it spends it.
Another option is to move our international matches and tournaments to Moi International Sports Centre in Kasarani. The grounds are fantastic, and all that may be in contention is whether or not the pitch would meet all the International Rugby Board standards in terms of specifications for dimensions of a rugby pitch. Also, the distance from the Central Business District might dissuade some of the less enthusiastic rugby followers.
With regard to postponement of games due to unavailability of players, I venture to guess that one of the reasons that this decision to continue with fixtures was reached might have been the realisation that clubs have an obligation to play their part in development of the sport by increasing their player bases. I also venture to suggest that if two clubs set to meet each other in a league tie reached a consensus that it in all fairness, the game would be better postponed until the proposing club’s players came back from national duty, the Union would willingly postpone that particular fixture.
Clubs should scout for talent to ensure continuity of teams; indeed a few clubs already do this albeit through unconventional means like promises of jobs. The current number of active rugby players in the country cannot be much to speak of. The challenge should be on the clubs to sell themselves as the clubs of choice to rugby players fresh out of high school. Proper incentives should be given to players to join clubs and nurture their talents. Clubs should reach out to high schools, including those outside Nairobi. Whatever happens to all the Western Kenya high school players once they finish school for example? I stand to be corrected, but I think that the last time we had an influx of Western Kenya bred former high school rugby players into the club league was back when the likes of Derrick Wamalwa and Dennis Mwanja joined the league. Where are these Western Kenya players now? If they join Kisumu R.F.C or Maseno University then perhaps these are untapped sources of potential world class rugby players that some enterprising individual or corporate should exploit.
My point is this. If the Union and the clubs met each other halfway when it comes to development of the game, then the issue of unavailability of players because of international assignment would hardly ever come up. There would also be competition for spots on the national team as we would have a number of capable players vying for all positions and we would all be glued to our television screens in anticipation of the naming of the teams since the final squad would be unpredictable.
Last is the issue of there being no league matches on days when Kenya is playing an international fixture at home and vice versa. I don’t know about everyone else, but if I was a club player, on a day when Kenya was playing an international fixture at home, I wouldn’t want to be torn between playing for my club and watching my country play. Similarly, a rugby fan would not want to be torn between watching his club play and watching his country play. As someone who follows the local league keenly, I make no bones about admitting that I would rush to watch my country play-even on a day when KCB was meeting Impala in a Kenya Cup final. After all, international matches, unlike league games are not played in Kenya practically every weekend. With regard to league fixtures continuing on days when the national team is playing away, I bet the Union would give us all the day off if we convinced them that we were all travelling to Uganda or Namibia or wherever else to watch the game being played. When you think about how congested our fixtures are, it is only fitting that international home games be the only exception to the rule that local fixtures proceed at any rate.
THE UNION OF KENYAN RUGBY
While rugby management in Kenya is probably not without its in-house squabbles, the Kenya Rugby Football Union has to be by far, the best run sports body in the country and is no doubt the primary reason for the current success enjoyed by the sport in Kenya.
The Union board is made up of individuals who are already well established in their own right. They are the top of the crop in their professional fields and are elected to lend their expertise to the running of the game of rugby in Kenya. Majority if not all of the board members played rugby at some point. Some still play the game at a non competitive level, meeting for the odd game of touch rugby. Having served their terms on the pitch, the directors now serve their terms on the board, familiar with the needs of the players and able to prioritize on delivery to them.
The board consists of a Chairman, Vice Chairman, Honorary Secretary, Honorary Treasurer, a director appointed as the chairman of the National Squads Management Committee, Director in Charge of Sevens, Director in Charge of Fifteens, Director in Charge of Leagues and Fixtures, Director in Charge of Women’s Rugby, Director in Charge of Referees and the Director in Charge of Marketing.
The National Squads Management Committee consists of its Chairman, the Director in Charge of Sevens, the Director in Charge of Fifteens, the coaches and the team managers of the fifteens side and the sevens side and as such, there is a lot of involvement in the preparation of a team to represent the country in both versions of the game.
Even with the high placed contacts that its members have, the board’s functionality is not possible without the Development Manager and the project coordinators and project facilitators on the ground. These officers shuffle in and out of the Union offices everyday, running from school to school executing rugby development programs, ensuring growth of age-grade rugby and running school leagues and tournaments both in and out of Nairobi, ensuring the smooth running of the club fixtures and ensuring that the basic requirements of the various clubs and of the national teams are met.
Rugby is run by the love of the game. Board members are not paid a single penny for the roles they play in running of the game. Board members do not use the office as a stepping stone to political office. This is not to say that they are not forward-thinking, but rather that they have their sights set beyond the allure of the benefits of holding political office. Board members seek to make advancements in their respective dockets. They are elected on merit and have a maximum of two terms, each two years long, to prove their worth. The Union holds an Annual General Meeting during which members retire by rotation once their terms are up. Those who are up for re-election make it back in more often than not. Retiring by rotation allows for new people to take up the vacant positions, infusing new perspectives and ideas into the Union board. Elections are free and fair.
Programme coordinators and facilitators get compensation that is less than commensurate to the amount of work they put in every day including Saturdays and Sundays. Coaches and Team Managers get peanuts for preparation of our national teams to represent the country. Rewards are found in the conclusion of successful Kenya Cup and Eric Shirley leagues, Enterprise and Mwamba Cups, local sevens circuit as well as the annual Rugby Super Series and Safari Sevens.
For players in Kenya, rugby is more than just a game. Rugby is a way of life. Once they finish high school, players identify with particular clubs and progress into club rugby. Once there, players experience a sense of fraternity that is noticeable both on and off the pitch in the way that they relate to each other, the way that they work together, and the way that they look out for each other. Older club members take the younger players under their wings and mentor them on rugby and careers. This is undoubtedly the reason why once one becomes a part of the fraternity, it becomes impossible to leave.
Worldwide, sport is nothing without its fans. Fans can make or break a team. The support they offer is immeasurable. The incentive they provide cannot be flouted. Rugby has a great following in Kenya. Pot bellied fifty year old high school alumni can spend hours discussing the prowess of western province schools in rugby or whether Saint Mary’s school is still is a force to reckon with. Over thirty years since it was established, Mean Machine R.F.C Old Boys who call themselves The MOB, still keep in touch with the current crop of players, egging them on and supporting them within their means. The national sevens team has a fanatical following that caused a stir at the 2008 Safari Sevens when they booed off the Tusker Project Fame singers demanding to watch rugby instead. This was understandable considering the fact that the “entertainment” was brought on just before the next scheduled Kenya game. Anyone in their right mind knows not to clear a rugby pitch for half-baked performers to sing blues just before a Kenya team game!
The two major rugby tournaments in the country-the Rugby Super Series and the Safari Sevens, are run by volunteers. Officials are drawn from the rugby fraternity. Bank managers, lawyers, engineers, teachers and people from several other professions come together twice a year to form committees that sit for months before these major tournaments, complimenting the board to ensure that the tournaments are a success. The rugby fraternity is a tight-knit one and so when called upon by the board to volunteer time towards organizing world class tournaments, it is impossible to say no. It is this commitment that saw the inclusion of a Tanzanian side in the Rugby Super Series and the inclusion of Fiji in the Safari Sevens this year. It is this commitment that ensures that the tournaments bring on board sponsors whose support is vital to the success of the tournaments. And to that end I congratulate Bamburi Cement and East African Breweries Limited and other associate sponsors whose contribution to rugby in Kenya has been immeasurable.
Having said that, it is ridiculous that until the surprise visit from the Prime Minister, Raila Odinga and his deputy Musalia Mudavadi (who incidentally played rugby in his high school and campus days, earning himself the nickname “Phantom”, pronounced “Phandom”, for his ability to run through the defense without being seen) to the 2008 Safari Sevens, the Kenyan government has offered no form of support to rugby in Kenya despite the fact that our boys are making great strides on the international scene; despite the fact that Safari Sevens brings together over 15 different nationalities to our country; despite the fact that the management of the game has not been dogged by the controversies surrounding the likes of football; despite the fact that our boys are setting milestones in rugby for other African countries. One can only imagine the development that would be possible with financial support from the government. The union staff would get attractive remuneration packages, the workforce would be increased and this would result in faster development of the game and in particular the women’s game. The rugby grounds would be developed and its facilities would be improved to cope with the increasing number of spectators and the increasing number of visiting teams.
We can only hope that as is true of politicians, the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister’s visit was a calculated move that we can comfortably interpret to mean that the new guard in government has a plan to develop the game of rugby. While we wait for that great day, the Kenya Rugby Football Union must continue to tirelessly play its part in advancement of the game in Kenya.
