Ochieng indebted to Ouna for bringing him to light

Youthful Mathare United right-back Kennedy Ochieng is indebted to coach Frank Ouna for quenching his long wait for his first-ever Football Kenya Federation Premier League (FKFPL) full debut.

Ouna handed the lanky defender his maiden league start during their 1-0 loss to Gor Mahia on Wednesday, cooling his more than a season wait for the starting berth since joining the club from Thika United.

The former Harambee Stars assistant coach gambled by starting Ochieng at right-back despite facing the in-form defending champions and the availability of the preferred first choice Martin Ongori who had been cleared by the doctor after suffering a petrifying concussion against AFC Leopards on the bench.

The 20-year old is among the handful of players who have benefited from playing time since Ouna arrived at the club last month following the firing of his predecessor Salim Ali.

Ochieng who clocked 90 minutes against KCB on Saturday in his second successive start thanked Ouna for believing in his abilities and vowed to repay him by staying on top of his game.

"My gratitude goes to coach Ouna for handing me my full debut. I had been waiting for it for more than a season. So far it has been good but a bit challenging as the results have not been coming forth but I will continue to work hard and help the team evade relegation, " he said.

The former Liberty Academy graduate who joined Mathare in 2019 termed life in the lower tiers as tough compared to that of the top flight.

"The National Super League and the Division one leagues are tougher than the FKFPL. There is a lot of power play in the lower tiers as opposed to the top level where it's a combination of both skill and power," he added.