Gor Mahia coach Jonathan McKinstry will be leaving the club at the end of the season to join the Gambia national men’s football team.McKinstry, who has been with K’Ogalo for two seasons, has won the league on both occasions.##NAJAVA_MECA_8148125##Last season, he won the title on the last day after beating Nairobi City Stars 4-1. This season, he has done even better, securing the league title with three games still to play.One of McKinstry’s notable signings at Gor Mahia is former Nairobi City Stars defender Kennedy “Vidic” Onyango, who joined in July 2023. Onyango became a key figure in Gor Mahia’s title chase this season, making the most appearances as a center-back.Onyango shared his thoughts with Mozzart Sport on how the Northern Irish coach related with his players: “He is a gentleman par excellence. He is very calm. I never heard him shout at anyone. He also loved team unity. We are sad that he is leaving, but we will have to move on.”“He bought us Nyama Choma occasionally. Tell me which coach in the league you’ve heard has taken 30 players for lunch because they performed the way he wanted,” added Onyango.History beckons for Junior Starlets as they take on BurundiOnyango praised McKinstry’s professional attributes: “His football knowledge is very high. He did his due diligence and researched well on opponents, so we were never caught unawares. After analysis, he would give us the best way to approach the match, and more often than not, we won.”According to Onyango, the players loved McKinstry’s training styles, which they found impactful, effective, and enjoyable, comparable to those in Europe.Despite his success, McKinstry didn’t always have the full backing of fans, especially last season and parts of this season when they felt the team was not winning enough. Even so, he kept his cool, continued with his work, and once everything was flowing, goals and points followed. Onyango noted it was different in the dressing room: “As a team, even when voices out there were criticizing the coach, he had our full backing because results showed otherwise. We knew who he is and how he wanted us to play.”“We will miss him, and we wish him all the best in his career,” concluded Onyango.McKinstry started his tenure as Gambia head coach with a 5-1 triumph over Seychelles in a Group F 2026 World Cup Qualifier. He will return to the country to oversee K’Ogalo’s last three matches before leaving fully for Gambia.Kisumu All Starlets crowned FKF Women’s National Super League champions
