Why Shabana’s survival is crucial for the league’s growth

As the 2023-24 Kenyan Premier League season edges closer and closer to its conclusion, the spotlight now shifts to the intense battle for survival after Gor Mahia secured a record-extending 21st league title.

With only three matches left in the 23/24 campaign, there’s still much intrigue as to what is going to happen on the lower end of the table.

Nzoia Sugar will definitely drop which is strange for a team that finished only six points adrift of eventual champions Gor last season. That unprecedented success has contributed to their failure as they lost almost all their best players during the off-season transfer window.

Their pitfall shows the challenges faced by smaller clubs in maintaining competitiveness against financially stronger opposition.

Play here and stand a chance of winning the over 46 Million SportPesa Midweek Jackpot

Next is the case of Shabana and Muhoroni Youth who occupy the other two relegation spots. A couple of weeks ago, it looked like Shabana’s race was run but two successive victories, including a 2-1 success over Muhoroni in a relegation six-pointer, had the Gusii side dreaming of survival once again.

Much fanfare welcomed Shabana back to the big boys table, and rightly so. Besides Mashemeji rivals Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards, Shabana can lay claim to being the third best-supported club in the country.

Their journey back to the topflight took a painful and gritty 17 years and it was moving to see how much bliss and pride it brought to the fans. The Tore Bobe faithful followed their team all the way during their push for promotion and they even increased in numbers this season.

Expectedly, those numbers have been going down since the turn of the year as the club struggled for results – they had recorded only one win in nine matches between January and March.

ALSO READ: Gor Mahia crowned Kenyan champions for a record-extending 21st time

They will be looking at the table now and thinking they can salvage the season after all. Should they manage to – and I hope they do – the fans and the league stand to benefit.

If there’s one thing that the Kenyan topflight has failed to achieve, that would be attracting fans to the stadiums. Empty stands and terraces paint matches across the country yet we all know globally the role of the proverbial 12th man.

They make football exciting. Their voices, the on and off-field banter, the drums, whistles, flares, isukutis, all make the game beautiful.

And that’s why there’s a case for a team like Shabana to remain in the league. A football result should impact a majority, not just a few boardroom honchos. There must be pain and elation in equal measure when there’s victory or otherwise.

ALSO READ: The impossible job: Beating Rafael Nadal at the French Open

That’s why the league will be at much loss should Shabana go down. Luckily, Coach Sammy Omollo’s side still have their fate in their hands. They additionally have what Muhoroni Youth or Sofapaka or FC Talanta, who are not entirely safe, don’t have – the fans.

New Sofapaka CEO Ronald Okoth says one of his main targets over the next few seasons is attracting some fans to the club. The loud drums and trumpet that pushed them to the 2009 title in their debut season have since gone silent and it will be interesting to see how Okoth will achieve his vision.

It's a headache that many clubs continue to struggle with but not Shabana who I'll be vouching for their survival.

ALSO READ: SportPesa launch revolutionary Tujiamini Initiative to nurture talent