A Walk With The Ghost: Chronicles Of Ex-Stars Boss Jacob Mulee (Part 2)

NAIROBI, Kenya- The last notable milestone in Kenyan football was at the Tunisia 2004 CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) where Harambee Stars lined up among 16 finalists at the high table of the continental game.

Since then, a near miss in the run up for the Angola 2010 campaign and botched qualification campaigns have contributed to give the football-loving public a decade and a half of heartache as the local game plummeted from the African radar.

To put the AFCON anguish into grim perspective, Facebook- Kenya’s most popular social media networking site was rolled out globally only 10 days before Tunisia 2004 final where the hosts beat Maghreb neighbours Morocco 2-1 to lift the trophy.

Micro-blogging news and networking site Twitter, the second most popular social platform would only be invented two years later (March 21, 2006), meaning no Kenyan has ever posted #KenyaAtAFCON, #AFCONHereWeCome #HarambeeStarsAtAFCON or anything of the sort.

With Stars on the verge of punching their ticket to the 2019 AFCON finals in Cameroon after a 14-year hiatus, online serving Kenyans can barely wait to be part of the party.

Stars currently sit atop Group F of qualifying with seven points from three matches, a point above three-time African champions Ghana in second while Ethiopia (four) and Sierra Leone (three) occupy the two bottom spots.

Kenya’s place at the expanded 24-team finals is subject to confirmation by the CAF Executive Board that will rule on the fate Sierra Leone who were suspended by FIFA from international football, causing them to miss their double header against Ghana and their tie against Stars a week ago.

As the wait continues, SportPesa News ventured down memory lane with Jacob ‘Ghost’ Mulee, the last man to lead Stars out to an AFCON match having qualified the national senior team to Tunisia 2004. 

This is the second part of the exclusive series titled A Walk With The Ghost: Chronicles Of Stars Boss Jacob Mulee and the first segment can be read here.

Born in the heart of Eastlands Area of Nairobi in Jericho Estate, football has been a part of Mulee’s life from the onset. His talent and passion for the beautiful game enabled him to have an illustrious playing career before eventually going into coaching.

“Being born in the mtaa (hood) played a key role in developing my love for football into a career.

“The streets of Jericho raised me and I’m happy when I go back and see Camp Toyoyo. When I was growing up, it was merely rocks and dust that we had no problem playing on,” Mulee began.

Football religion

“We used to say and treat football as a religion growing up and despite many other estates trying to adopt that title, Jericho will always remain the place where it came from. 

“There was nothing else for me to do other than play football and I’m very grateful that was the environment I was born into,” Mulee stated.

The 49-year old began to hone his football skills at St. Michael’s Primary School before moving on to Ofafa Jericho High School where he played as both a goalkeeper and striker. 

In no time, his ability to read the game and dish out instructions to his teammates enabled him to be named captain.

Mulee helped the team win the then Kadenge Cup in 1981. He fondly remembers one of the heaviest defeats of his playing career against Starehe Boys School, captained by politician Peter Kenneth.

“We suffered one of our worst defeats at the hands of Kenneth and his team. The 4-1 loss was so bad that my teammates thought I had been bribed to let in goals,” the man who was between the sticks for the proud football giants recalled. 

Upon leaving Ofafa, Mulee joined Iqbal FC in Division 2 before joining Volcanoes FC where he was fortunate to witness famous German outfit Bayern Monchengladbach FC visit Kenya for a friendly match.

He rose in the ranks and later was gifted with an opportunity to play for Re-Union FC.

Before Mulee took over the national team in 2003, he had a 10-year stint with Tusker FC where he won three league titles and a similar number of Cecafa Kagame Cups. 

Burkina Faso victory

Stars had failed to qualify for four previous finals in a row since featuring in Senegal 1992 and prior to Tunisia 2004, the team had returned home without registering a victory at the continental showpiece.

“I went to Tunisia with three targets: win a match, score a goal in regulation time and make it into the second round. We managed to achieve two of the set targets and I will forever salute Titus Mulama for scoring our first ever AFCON goal against Mali,” Mulee said with a grin on his face.

Kenya lost to 3-1 to Mali in the opening game of the 2004 AFCON finals before going down 3-0 to Senegal four days later, ensuring that the final game was merely to save face as they would not make it past the group stages.

The game that would forever be remembered by Kenyans against Burkina Faso was played on Monday, February 2. 

Coincidentally, the game was on the same day as the birthday of the man who’s goal was responsible for sending Harambee Stars to the finals, the legend Dennis ‘The Menace’ Oliech.

Former Harambee Stars and Tusker FC head coach, Jacob 'Ghost' Mulee (left) stresses a point to SportPesa News writer, Louis Kalinga during their interview in Nairobi last week. PHOTO/SPN

Oliech celebrated his 19th birthday in supreme fashion by scoring a goal and setting up the other two as Kenya battled to an impressive 3-0 victory, still the first and only victory registered by Stars at the AFCON finals.

The other two goals came from Emmanual Ake and substitute John Baraza.

“The victory against Burkina Faso was amazing. I still recall the exact feeling I had when the referee blew for full-time.  I felt good that Kenya had left the tournament with having made a statement. It proved that we could perform just as well as any African country given proper leadership and preparation,” Mulee underlined. 

When asked about the influence of the young Oliech to his Stars squad, Mulee could not help but smile before collecting himself to give an answer.

Oliech impact

Considered as arguably the best forward that Kenya has ever produced, that moment in time proved to be the stepping stone for the striker who went on to have a fruitful playing career in Europe after his talent came to the fore at SportPesa Premier League side Mathare United FC.

Oliech went on to play in Qatar and in the French Ligue 1 with Nantes and Auxerre and remains Kenya’s all-time leading goal scorer with 34 goals from 72 appearances.

After a moment of deep thought, Mulee began: “He is the menace. For lack of a better word, I think that describes him best.

“If there was ever a player that I coached throughout my career who was hungry for football and had an undeniable passion for the game, it was Oliech,” he continued.

“I remember when I was assistant coach to the late Reinhard Fabisch, may God rest his soul in eternal peace, we went to play against Nigeria in Lagos and Dennis kept asking me if the legendary Taribo West was going to play.

“He was only 17 at the time and all he wanted to do was take on a player who had featured at the World Cup. For me, that was unbelievable,” Mulee revealed. 

The veteran coach hailed his incredible working relationship with Oliech and admitted the chemistry between them was what enabled him to bring the very best out of the striker who also passed through his Alma Mater, Ofafa.

Often making as many headlines about his misdeeds including bar brawls and breaking team curfew during his decade as the lynchpin of Stars attack, Oliech played his best football in national colours under Ghost.

Before that 85th rocket winner against Cape Verde that confirmed Stars entry into Tunisia 2004, Oliech made headlines on December 14, 2002 when a desperate Mulee summoned him from the bench and what the teenager did next stunned the packed CCM Kirumba Stadium in Mwanza into silence.

Showing jet-heeled pace, Oliech danced through the Tanzanian defence and left them looking like training cones before rifling home the winner in a 3-2 win for Stars against Tanzania in the final of the Cecafa Senior Challenge Cup in the 72nd minute. 

A new star was born as Kenya ended an eight-year drought for the regional crown in the most dramatic of fashions.

Having inherited a side moulded by Fabisch, Mulee underscores his team has marked contrast to the current Stars line-up, diplomatically declining to say which outfit would win a one-off football match if pit together at the height of their powers.

“The squad now is more complete than it has been in years and I believe they have what it takes to achieve what we did in 2004, if not more.

“There is a nice mix of young and experienced players and watching them at home against Ghana and Ethiopia last month was incredible. The determination they showed was great and if indeed we do qualify, I have no doubt that they will put on a good show,” Mulee appraised.

-To be concluded in Part 3