Born in Uganda but chose to switch his allegiance to adopted country Rwanda, Meddie Kagere’s rise is a unique narrative as he marched on to conquer Kenya’s Premier League (KPL).
Players succumb to the toll of rigorous fitness and performance drills at the age of 31 as performances begin to recede due to demanding first-team football which takes a toll on the body. But Kagere is a man in his own league. He doesn’t show any of the aforementioned and looks more of a well-oiled and energy-reserved machine at all times.
He has always been viewed as one the finest in the seasons he’d spent in the KPL but this term peaked a performance that ranked him among the very best. Kagere became the first Rwandan to scoop the Kenyan Sports Journalists Association Most Valuable Player of the year award.
Success does not come without its toll and Meddie has been the epitome of that from this past January, making that night feat worth all the wait.
Donning a gold-colored bling along with a matching black long-sleeve shirt, the forward wept on stage as he was announced, winner. A devoted Muslim, he then pointed to the skies in acknowledgment of God, Allah, amidst rapturous cheers from the audience.
The gala couldn’t have been a better way to cap off the year for a footballer who only rejoined Gor Mahia eighteen months ago.
The 31-year-old’s honoring followed his tremendous campaign with the House of Ogola outfit in which he netted fourteen (14) goals and made four assists to secure Mahia a 16th Kenyan Premier League gong.
He warded off rivalries from teammate Goerge Odhiambo and golden boot winner with 17 goals Masoud Juma of third-placed Kariobangi Sharks to pocket UGX 8.5m, a 55-inch LG TV set, a DStv decoder and a return ticket from Skyward Express.
To sweeten it all, he won a year-long medical cover and a presidential invite this year in June as part of the government’s new approach to recommend home-based performing sports stars.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“I would like to thank God for this recognition because, without Him, nothing could have happened. This award has come through hard work. Hard work pays but it pains,”[/perfectpullquote]
an emotional Kagere managed to say as he received the top prize.
“But I didn’t do this alone. It was with the help of my teammates, the office, staff, and fans. I would like to thank my teammates for their relentless support and advises. I saw it coming because I used to improve my playing situation and through that, I have achieved it. I am really excited,” he said.
That and more accolades.
Prior to his season of second-coming, the goal-poacher finished runner-up to 2015 MVP Micheal Olunga –now featuring for La Liga’s Girona on loan – as the pair’s deadly partnership delivered Gor Mahia the title, unbeaten.
Clubs aboard are now lurking in the background willing to sneak the rising star’s signature at any slight signal of a break down in the striker’s contract negotiations with his employers. Chairman Ambrose Rachier is understood to be braced up for a bombardment of deal proposals from suitors for his players with Kagere top of the list of want-away Gor Mahia stars.
The naturalized Ugandan-born inked a two-year deal with the state-run outfit and in the wake of his new stride, he has unavoidably become a sought-after priority as his contract nears its expiration.
A promise of CAF Champions League football the coming season is tipped to work the trick of dissuading the KSH 200,000-per month star from heading for the exit but, that too appears to hinge on how much Rachier offers on the table as a new proposal for a contract renewal.
There have been whispers of a possible switch to Yanga, Tanzanian Premier League’s latest moneybags, but that also is dependent on the player’s contract situation.
High standards are a cherished virtue at serial title winners Mahia, it’s however strongly rumored that the Amavubis’ hit-man and his teammates are paid in cash rather than via bank accounts – a thing not palatable to the hearing for a club of Gor’s status.
While this matters little in the 31-year-old’s career development, it’s significant to chronicle how The Wasps’ attacker walked the ladder to his recent height. With a career spanning in 2004, Mbale Heroes FC in Uganda was Meddie’s first team and in his formative years, attended Entebbe Parents’ Secondary School, in the airport based-town of the East African nation.
Then moves to ATTRACO FC, Kiyovy Sports Mukura Victory followed before crossing the divide to join neighbors Rwanda where he played for Police FC in 2010.
Bagging 38 goals in 40 games, the Rwandan Football Federation mounted a campaign for the Kampala-born to be issued Rwandan citizenship. The request was granted in 2011 and to this day, the forward remains the Amavubi Stars’ go-to-guy in the attack.
Stops at Esperance Sportive de Zarzis Rayon Sports and Albania’s KF Tirana ended each a season before Gor Mahia beckoned in 2015.
