Well, it is now probably official that Gor Mahia will be
without Michael Olunga and Meddie Kagere for the 2016 season and have quickly
moved to replace them with Jacob Keli and Rwandese Jacques Tusiyenge. But will
the two be missed by the club? Gor Mahia fans tend to live by the slogan “no
one is bigger than the club” and always believe replacements are readily
available. Sometimes rightly so, like when Olunga replaced Danny, but at times
it could be a miss…like the years it took to replace Peter Dawo. Olunga and
Kagere scored a whooping 57 goals between in 2015 and I have been wondering how
easy it is to replicate that, so I took a step down memory lane to see how
lethal other strike partnerships were. Were they for example more prolific than
Peter Dawo and Sammy Onyango “Jogoo” in 1987, Gor most successful year to date?
Or the partnerships between the legendary goal getter of the 80s Hesbone Omollo
and whoever he partnered with during those glory days of the 80s?
In fact they were. Dawo and Jogoo scored 47 goals in all
competitions between them (31 goals in the league) in 1987 while Omollo and
Hamisi managed 33 in 1983. It is only in the league where Hesbone Omollo /
Gedion Hamisi and George Yoga / Nahashon Oluoch partnerships outscored the Olunga
and Kagere partnership. The tables below shows just how prolific this
combination was.
Year
|
Partnership
|
All Competitions
|
2015
|
Michael Olunga / Meddie Kagere
|
57 (29/23)
|
1987
|
Peter Dawo / Sammy Onyango
|
47 (32/15)
|
1981
|
Abbey Nassur / Gedion Hamisi
|
37 (25/12)
|
1983
|
Hesbone Omollo / Gedion Hamisi
|
33 (18/15)
|
Year
|
Partnership
|
League
|
1979
|
George Yoga / Nahashon Oluoch
|
36 (21/15)
|
1983
|
Hesbone Omollo / Gedion Hamisi
|
33 (18/15)
|
2015
|
Michael Olunga / Meddie Kagere
|
32 (19/13)
|
1987
|
Peter Dawo / Sammy Onyango
|
31 (19/12)
|
1981
|
Abbey Nassur / Gedion Hamisi
|
30 (21/9)
|
*It is worth noting
that in 1979 George Yoga “Best” and Nahashon Oluoch Lule scored 38 goals
between them but I do not have the full stats of that season and the rest of
the 70s yet.
Kagere and Olunga
Gedion Hamisi: Formidable partnership with Hesbone Omollo and Abbey Nassur in the early 80s
Olunga in the League
While I still don’t have the complete records from the 70s,
it is well understood that Maurice Ouma “Sonyi” is the club’s leading scorer in
a league season with 26 goals in 1976. I have therefore attempted to see where Olunga’s
19 league goals would place him with the other illustrious scorers of the 80s
and 90s. He ties Peter Dawo’s 19 league goals in 1987 but apart from Sonyi, who
else is up there with him? The following table illustrates.
No of Goals
|
Player
|
Year
|
21
|
Abbey Nassur
|
1981
|
21
|
George Yoga
|
1979
|
19
|
Michael Olunga
|
2015
|
19
|
Peter Dawo
|
1987
|
18
|
Hesbone Omollo
|
1983
|
