As the battle for group J comes to a nail biting end I can’t help recall the last game of the AFCON 2004 qualifiers…it was a game pitting Harambee Stars versus the then surprise package, Cape Verde Islands. Cape Verde were having their way until late in the game when Dennis Oliech, then a teenager did the unimaginable. He received the ball in the midfield, dribbled past an opponent or two before unleashing a thunderbolt that no one expected the Cape Verde ‘keeper to stop. It ended 1-0 in favour of Harambee Stars and they went on to qualify for the tournament. The achievement was shortlived though, as defeats to Mali and Senegal in the first two games saw the stars concede six goals and were all but eliminated. The third game versus Burkina Faso was just a formality but the stars still had something to prove as they ran out 3-0 winners, courtesy of goals from Emmanuel Ake, Dennis Oliech, and current Sofapaka captain John Baraza.

That was almost a decade ago and today as we play Uganda at Namboole’s Mandela Stadium, we have much more experience and authority to prove to the noisy neighbours that we rule this region! Oliech is now a more complete player as far as maturity and experience in the game is concerned. He comes to this game not only as the team’s captain, but also with UEFA Champions League experience and also enjoying top notch form having recently scored his first ever hat trick in French football for his club AJ Auxerre. He has of late established himself as one of the most dependable players in his French club.

As we go into this game with folded fists crossing our chests in a show of pride we can even dare to believe that come January next year, we’ll be among the teams participating in the African Nations Cup tournament. Our fate might not be in our hands right now but WE ARE KENYA! We go for the impossible, do the unthinkable and achieve the unimaginable! We believe that Oliech is the messiah, and the other ten players on the field the disciples! By the end of the ninety minutes we’d have been delivered. Just as he did in 2003, Oliech is still going to be the magician out there and even if Angola win in Guinea Bissau we are going to walk out of Mandela Stadium with our chests held out and heads high in national pride.

Emotions are sure to run high as the national anthem of Kenya hits the air before the game and the eleven soldiers out there led by Oliech will be out to win and not just silence critics but also reassure doubters. With the current form of the team’s members I bet we are going to score more than one goal, I’d go for two or three with Oliech definitely being on the score sheet because I know he’s got something to prove as the whole nation rests its hopes on his leadership.

This game couldn’t have come at a better time, with most of the players being on-form and even others on fire. McDonald Mariga comes back to the team after missing two games through injury and suspension. He has this season established himself as a regular starter in his team Real Sociedad since moving there on loan from Inter Milan. His presence really inspires confidence in the team, and a combination of skill while attacking and physical presence when defending is here at a very opportune moment. His brother Victor Wanyama is also on a high in his career. He recently made his bow in Europe’s second tier tournament with his new club Celtic of Scotland and I can count on him being a handful for the Ugandans in the middle of the pack.

Humphrey Mieno is another on-form player who’s control and trickery will be of much importance in this game. Watching the replay of the Kenya-Guinea Bissau game, I feel Mieno is the kind of midfielder that the stars sorely missed and today we are sure to see one or two defence-splitting passes. Well, we all have to rest easy as this missing link was somehow spotted by Zico , and kudos to him for that.

If the current news in the media is anything to go by then I should say Mike Baraza’s inclusion in the starting lineup is a true blessing for our country. Apart from the freak accident in Nakuru two weeks ago, I should say all that Baraza has laid hands on (or feet!) has gone on to be a success. He’s currently the joint top scorer in the Kenyan Premier League and one of the strikers in the league who are enjoying a very good run of form. He recently completed a big money move from Ulinzi Stars and has not disappointed in the blue and white jersey. He is the one kind of striker any defender would never look forward to playing against. His goal and huge contribution towards the third goal when AFC Leopards played against Gor Mahia last Sunday all but underlined what an important player Kenya has in him and I won’t be surprised to see his name on the score sheet this evening.

My bet would be a 2-1 win for the stars but I’ll also leave room for a surprise, a 3-1 win for Kenya maybe! And as we join hands in common belief that we’ve got what it takes to win in Uganda, we should also hope and pray that Guinea Bissau wins their game against Angola!

COME ON YOU KENYA, WE CAN DO IT!