Mathare United Football Club not only want to finish the 2023/24 FKF National Super League season safely in a promotion slot but want the title itself. The championship trophy is key to the players’ psyche and the general improvement of the team spirit in recent games, midfielder Boaz Maeri reveals. Sitting just a point behind leaders Mara Sugar in the log, Mathare dispatched Vihiga Bullets on Friday afternoon to close down on Mara who play on Sunday.
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Maeri credits their recent run of form to a more professional dressing room and general uplifting in team spirit. “No one is even talking about promotion at the moment. All eyes are set on the championship title. We believe that through this, promotion will come as a bonus so my teammates are working towards this,’’ he says.Coach Francis Kimanzi replaced Leonard Odipo midway through the season and has steered the ball-playing side to some tough victories. Maeri notes that the positive attitudes in the dressing room is a result of a more professionalized approach by the technical bench. Everyone executes their roles from the management all the way down to the players. Mathare United spank Vihiga Bullets to inch closer to Mara Sugar“I think the way we are being handled as a unit also uplifts us and improves morale. As a player, you then only have to think of showing up whenever called upon,’’ continues the former Nairobi United man. Maeri crossed over from another promotion-chasing side Nairobi United in the mid-season and reveals why. In any case, he could as well have climbed a tier up as a number of premier league clubs reached out.“Mathare approached me because I had a good first leg with Nairobi United, and because the transfer window was thin, I decided to move,’’ he adds. ##NAJAVA_MECA_8136613##Fitting in at Mathare came naturally for him, and he credits his former coach Paul Odhiambo at Nairobi United. “In Coach Paul’s team, you could never play if you weren’t fit. That was a requirement. So at all times our fitness levels were always up. I believe this helped me fit into Mathare’s playing style right away. There’s however a lot more freedom here as I am allowed to go forward a lot,’’ says Maeri, who playing under coach Kimanzi, has found the back of the net five times in just the second leg. More National Super League matches will still go on this weekend with Mathare keenly following the proceedings when Mara Sugar host Nairobi United. Coach Beldine Odemba eager to professionalize the Kenya Women’s Premier LeagueThis is a fixture that could set the tone for how the slumboys will play their remaining four opponents who include both teams. They will take on Nairobi United then Darajani Gogo. Leaders Mara Sugar will be their penultimate match before rounding off the season with Mombasa Stars.
