National soccer Harambee Stars has cancelled the trip to Namibia which was to serve as the training base before facing Angola in their 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier on 4thJune in Luanda.
Foreign players including skipper Denis Oliech, strikers Allan Wanga and George ‘ Blackberry ' Odhiambo were expected to link up with the team next week at their training camp in Windhoek before the trip was cancelled.
The final squad of 18 players for the 2012 Africa cup of nation's qualifier against the Palancas Negras of Angola was named Thursday.
Harambee Stars revived their hopes of featuring in the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time since 2004 when they came from behind to beat visitors Angola 2-1 in a 2012 group ‘J' qualifier at the Nyayo national stadium earlier in March.
We don’t know what’s going on. We were all packed and ready to travel but on the way to the airport the trip stopped and the bus turned back. Nobody has told us anything,” one player.
Harambee Stars team manager Edward Oduor said they were awaiting for further advice from Hussein Swaleh, the Football Kenya Limited technical affairs chairman.
Swaleh said he did not understand why the trip had failed yet everything had been arranged including playing an international against Namibia on Monday.
He referred all inquiries to Sports Commissioner Gordon Oluoch, who sits in the Harambee Stars Management Board but he could not be reached, and so was board chairman Evans Kidero.
“The trip is under the board. It is for them to explain why it failed,” FKL chairman Mohammed Hatimy said.
The team was asked to return to their hotel midway to the airport to board their flight to Windhoek, Namibia, where they were scheduled to play the host on Monday.
Most Harambee Stars board members contacted were unwilling to comment on the aborted trip with Hussein Swaleh referring journalists to Commissioner of Sports Gordon Oluoch who was not picking his phone.
The national coach said this has interfered with his plans and he has to continue training the whole weekend to catch up for any miss.
"We had our training program for the next four days lined up with the match against Namibia factored in. Now that we are not travelling we have to make use of this time to make up for it," he said.
Otieno said he would consult with Football Kenya to see whether he can schedule a match against Libya who are in the country for a two-week training camp on their way to Comoros for the Nations Cup qualifier.
"I’m not sure whether Libya can agree to step in. This will be a good catch up," he said.
Football Kenya vice-chairman Erastus Okul said the trip was called off due to lack of funds.
"I hope now everybody can appreciate how difficult it is to raise funds for the team and that we have always done our best whenever we were in charge.
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