Edwin Mukolwe has only missed out seven times in between the sticks for Nairobi City Stars in the 2023/24 FKF Premier League season, and these seven times could have made a world of difference in the Golden Glove chase for the season.Mukolwe, in just his first season since ending his three-year stay at Bidco United, wasted no time assuming a starting role in coach Abel Omuhaya’s goalkeeping department.Well into the double digits in clean-sheets kept, the remaining three fixtures for Simba Wa Nairobi could still spur him to a podium finish among the local league’s finest goalkeepers.For a first season, Mukolwe feels it went well.Mohammed Bajaber ready for the next step after stellar season with City Stars”I think it has been great, both for myself and for the team. Not to mean that it has been smooth-sailing, ups and downs were there but how we manoeuvred through; that’s what makes it a great season in my assessment,’’ says the former AFC Leopards man.City Stars sit tied in fourth spot with Bandari FC, but falling behind by just one goal difference with the dockers.For a team that paraded a dozen new faces in the top flight, and young ones too, Mukolwe terms such a season great.Coach Nicholas Muyoti literally threw into the competitive top flight a batch of un-tested talents and deliver they did. Occasionally taking hard lessons along the way, but the resilience in them stood out for Mukolwe.”The young players always bring in new ideas and at City Stars, as experienced players we created an environment where all ideas are welcome. We listen, and we experiment. Most times they worked, and even when some did not, there were lessons learned,’’ reveals Mukolwe.##NAJAVA_MECA_8130310##Muyoti’s men have found the back of the net 38 times, the fourth highest in the league and lost nine times; that’s as high as second placed Tusker FC.Mukolwe further reveals that it’s the lessons taken from the few stumbles that count for the team.”World over, it’s a characteristic of young teams to falter sometimes. Inconsistencies in results come as a result of constant experimenting by the young players. Oftentimes, there are things that are new to them and it takes the quality in coaching to make them see and learn. We are privileged to have that at City Stars,” he added.The inclusion of video analyses after league matches has also contributed a lot to the team’s constant improvement. The coaches feed into lads’ eagerness to rectify their match-day performances and have video analysis sessions not more than 24 hours after the games.”It’s always good to arrest the challenges while the mistakes made in matches are still fresh in our minds. That’s why the coaches do that. There are very many mistakes that can be made in a game, many ways to concede so getting a few out of the way improves one’s chances of not making similar errors,” continues Mukolwe.It is always the norm for the more moneyed sides to come hunting at teams that have threatened to upset the order of things and with City Stars’ performance this season, the Sharks have most definitely smelled blood and will come.Highly rated forward Samuel Kapen is already on the radar of both Gor Mahia and Kenya Police- not to mention interests from abroad. Mukolwe sees this.Decision on Gor Mahia’s next coach expected by Saturday”Of course our performance has attracted a lot of attention and there is no doubt that some of the young top performers might move on to better opportunities. If, however, we were to stay intact for the next season, having learnt everything they have during the current campaign, I am confident the team can actually have a go at the league title,” he concludes.Simba Wa Nairobi will host Kakamega Homeboyz when the league returns in mid June and then face off with Sofapaka and Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) for their last match of the campaign. The league title is already decided and winning all three contests can only mean they finish higher than fifth on the log.
