Trans Nzoia County has proved to be the power house for the football talent through various secondary schools producing various talents which has gone far, even playing in the international league.
Just mention the Green Commandos of Kakamega High School in Western Kenya and the craze for football in the region will be associated with its principal Julius Mambili who schooled at Trans Nzoia’s Kitale Day now St Anthony’s Boys’.
Same for the soccer side Scorpions of Musingu High also in Kakamega County, the success of the arch-rivals of Green Commandos will be probably be showered on the principal Bernard Lukuya also a resident in Trans Nzoia County and a former chairman of the Trans Nzoia KESSHA.
Lukuya had also headed Friends Bwake Boys’ secondary school in Trans Nzoia which fought tooth and nail before being knocked of the Trans Nzoia 2025 KESSSA soccer finals played last week in Eldoret by Kitale’s defenders St Josephs’ Boys’.
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Interestingly, Friends Bwake’s Green Lions guidance to the Trans Nzoia tense finals played outside the county was heaped on the principal John Mukongolo who happened to have been once the deputy head at St Anthony.
Mukongolo is said to have been behind the branding of the Solidarity title for St Anthony. He is a permanent resident in Trans Nzoia.
The same story is said of the principal of St Joseph’s Boys’ alias JOBO Cosmas Nabungolo who throughout his teaching career had headed Kapenguria Boys’ Goseta High, St Anthony’s and St Peters’ Mumias before coming back to his home county in the current station.
Nabo as the Jobo head is fondly referred to, boasts of being a mentor to Mukongolo and his Goseta counterpart Geoffrey Murunga as their four giants sides battled for the Trans Nzoia semi-finals and finals for the county title.
Murunga had worked as teacher at St Anthony’s’ under where he and Nabo cooperated in the development of soccer.
And then came in the incumbent Simon Masibo upon the scrapping of the MoE delocalization policy and continued with the programmes of the player-student pursuing professional sport locally and internationally. The school has produced a good number of players to national Harambee team and to private clubs participating in FKF-organised leagues.
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Two former students Andrian Kibet and Amos Wanjala are in European sport-cum-education academies. Currently four students Enock Lamiani, Gregory Agesa, Allan Wesonga and Apollo Gitahi are earmarked to play in Spain at the end of the year upon sitting their KCSE.
So, as the Trans Nzoia Second Term 2025 KESSSA games were on the final leg all the eyes were fixated on the outcome of the results for the soccer both for the boys and girls categories.
And as it were St Joseph’s Boys and Wiyeta girls’ were crowned the champions. Wiyeta defeated St Joseph’s Girls in a replay following an appeal for the latter’s earlier victory.
There is also Loius Ingavi, former student of Goseta who’s pursuing professional football in the US according the Senior principal Murunga the alumni was an inspirational figure to the entire football fraternity in the schools which had increasingly shaped up upon his entry one a year ago.
But why the regional and national spotlight on the Trans Nzoia secondary school soccer sides?
The local schools have performed remarkably in the KESSSA-organized tournaments attracting both national and international scouts. On several occasions, St Josephs, St Anthony’s and Wiyeta Girls’ has represented the country in the East And Central secondary schools games with Jobo having represented the country in last year’s tourney in Uganda last year.
The development of the country’s youthful football and tapping of the talent has kept on rotating among Trans Nzoia learning institutions being targeted for recruitment centres.
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When it was thought that moving the final legs of the tournament to Eldoret about 70 Kms away from Trans Nzoia because of security concerns and for the sake of neutrality, hundred of soccer fans including Governor George Natembeya thronged the venue of Chebiasis Secondary school amid high tensions.
In many years, residents in Uasin Gishu who are normally used to athletics were treated to high-ball artistry, courtesy of the Trans Nzoia county KESSSA quarter finals.
From Mombasa to Nairobi, Kakamega to Kisii, and Kisumu to Nakuru, football scouts, managers, sponsors and administrators traveled by air, road and motorbikes in droves to Eldoret to St Joseph’s Vs St Anthony’s derby which had been billed as the country’s final match that could determine Kenya’s rep to the 2025 East and Central tournament set towards the end-year.
And as the five-day Rift Valley Regional games gets off the ground in Eldoret tomorrow, enthusiasts will be eager to follow St Joseph’s Boys and Wiyeta Girls as the Trans Nzoia heroes and heroines fight for the national soccer title and later the EA&C championship.
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Several players turning for St Joseph’s first eleven among marksman them Istin Simiyu are among those reported to be on the runners for prospective sponsorship for foreign engagement and trials for the national soccer teams.
Both St Joseph’s Boys’ and Anthony’s sponsored by the Catholic Church are national institutes are expected to admit the Grade 10 students next year for the all the three pathways of STEM, Social Science and Social Science, Arts and Sports while Goseta and Friends Bwake falling the Extra-County schools will only admit two trunks with the Mathematics being a compulsory subject.
The schools which also excel in Volleyball, Netball, Ruby and Handball are expected to pull many entrants for the Grade 10 during the inaugural CBE intake in 2026.
BY ABISAI AMUGUNE
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