“This hurts. We put so much into organising this tournament but our teams once again did not take it with the seriousness it deserves,” Sam, a driver lamented as darkness covered the coastal city of Dar-es-Salaam on Friday.
As part of the dedicated service team that has been ferrying officials to and from venues assigned for the 2019 SportPesa Cup in Tanzania, the middle-aged man has endured a punishing shift for the past week or so.
His down time during that period has been following the gripping action unfold in the non-stop knockout football action that kicked off on Tuesday and climaxes on Sunday with two of the eight teams that started, Kariobangi Sharks FC taking on Bandari FC in the final.
Like many Tanzanians, Sam was convinced that one of the four teams from the largest nation in East Africa would lift the coveted trophy and end the Kenyan monopoly.
However, for the second time in three years, Dar will host an all-Kenyan final and for those in Bongo as the country is known, that cuts deep, so deep bearing in mind the football rivalry between the two countries started in 1926 when the first Gossage Cup (now Cecafa Senior Challenge Cup) was played.
“It appears our teams do not realise the benefits of winning this cup. Getting the chance of playing a team like Everton does not come every day.
“Our brothers from Kenya have given this tournament the respect it deserves and look at what it is doing to their country’s football,” Sam went on as he patiently through the chocking Dar traffic- known here as ‘foleni’.
“They do not realise people like us have sacrificed a lot for this tournament and the best reward for us would at least, having one of our teams in the final. Last time Everton came here, they played Gor from Kenya, now we will not even see them again this year,” he lamented.