NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 4 – FKF Premier League champions Tusker FC have paraded five new signings ahead of the 2023-24 FKF Premier League campaign, with the brewers looking to wrestle back the title after narrowly losing it to Gor Mahia last season.
The club has began a new outlook, with most of the senior players having left and apart from the five the club has signed, they are looking to rake in a maximum of three more.
The Brewers have acquired the services of Joseph Mwangi, James Kibande, Fabian Adikiny and Ugandan John Byamukama, while goalkeeper Edwin Simiyu has been promoted from the Youth Team.
Mwangi, 26, arrives at Ruaraka from Nzoia Sugar where he has played for the last four seasons, after signing from Nyahururu’s Griffons. He was one of Nzoia’s top performers last season, having directly contributed to 21 goals (14 goals, seven assists) in 30 matches for the Bungoma-based club.
“I am delighted to join Tusker FC. This is a big club and when the opportunity finally opened up to come here, I couldn’t think twice. I have been training with them for the last week and I have been welcomed really well. I already feel at home and I am ready to give my best for the jersey,” noted Mwangi.
He has moved to Ruaraka alongside Kibande, 25, who returned to Nzoia Sugar on loan from Kenya Police FC in mid-season. Kibande had joined Police at the start of the season, but opted for a return to Nzoia midway through in search of playing time. He had joined the sugar millers straight from St. Anthony’s High School, Kitale, in 2018.
In the second half of last season, Kibande played 15 games for Nzoia, scoring five goals. In total the entire season, he played 19 games, having featured only four times in his short stint with Police.
“I look at this as a fresh challenge in my career. Tusker is a team with ambitions and you can see from how they have been performing over the last few seasons. It will offer me a challenge to also step up and do well. My target is to help the team win trophies this season,” Kibande added.
Midfielder Adikiny, 22, arrives from Murang’a Seal, where he actively played a massive role in helping the earn promotion to the Premier League. He had previously featured for Muhoroni Youth as a School boy in 2017 before moving to Murang’a.
The team has also added a second Ugandan into the fray, with the signing of midfielder Byamukama from Gaddafi FC. The 24-year-old can play in any position across midfield, and his versatility was the biggest attraction for the technical bench to hand him a contract.
Meanwhile, keeper Simiyu has joined a list of players to be promoted from the Tusker Youth team to the senior team. He follows in the footsteps of Eric Zakayo, John Njuguna and latest one being Collins ‘Kante’ Otieno who was promoted last year.
