Kolanya hockey team out of secondary schl games
Busia will not have a team at the National Secondary Schools Term One games that starts at Friends School Kamusinga in Bungoma County tomorrow after Kolanya Boys Hockey team was thrown out of the event on Sunday through a board room decision.
Kolanya had qualified to represent Nzoia Region at the National finals despite losing 0-1 to hosts Friends School Kamusinga in the finals of the regional games at the same venue.
The host was given green light to field two teams after Garissa region failed to enter a
team hence St Anthony the reigning national and East African champions appealed to the Kenya Secondary Schools Sports Association over claims that Kolanya who beat them in the semi finals had field two non bona fide students.
They sought KSSSA’s intervention after the County Directors of Education threw out their first appeal to have Kolanya locked out and their place taken over by them.
The school Board of Management chairman Joel Okomoli has decried the move to lock out the school from the national event and has appealed for quick intervention to reverse the decision to allow
the team feature in the event.
Okomoli said it is not true the school fielded non students.
” The investigators came to school and they were unable to verify the claims, Later they summoned the Principal and coach to Bungoma for “further talks” before they reached that unfortunate move” he said.
He said the original appeal from St. Anthony was for one boy who is in forms 3Y.
“He is our student and his parents can ascertain, This is which hunt by some KSSSA officials from Nzoia region for a county like Busia to have team at the national finals!” he added.
The school was informed via an email sent to the Principal Ibrahim Nakhanya and never copied to Busia County Director of Education Rebecca Butalanyi which should have been the norm, adding that the
school suspects St. Anthony are behind these machinations.
It is the first time the County is sending a team to the nationals of the championships which could be historic if the move to lock the team is rescinded.
In a communiqué to the school on Sunday, KSSSA confirmed Kolanya
had fielded two players who are not students and hence told not to
appear at the venue of the championships.
Sources revealed that St. Anthony are being favored at the expense of other teams from Nzoia region.
Last year, St. Anthony made sure Kakamega who had beaten them at the regional games in Busia were locked out at the National finals in Machakos.
By virtue of Kenya being the Hockey boys defending champions, the country will send three teams at the games scheduled for Eldoret thus St. Anthony’s machinations to ensure they secure one of the top
three positions for them to defend their title.
The latest development has annoyed Busia officials who are said to be scheming to appeal tomorrow against the decision to lock out Kolanya Boys from the national finals.
