The Glamour Boys are nearing a return to the Premier League after a 17-year wait and have already started early preparations for next season.
Shabana FC may not have been promoted yet but they are already planning for life in the top flight next season as they edge ever closer to the ‘Promised Land.’
With six matches remaining, Shabana enjoy a two-point lead over second-placed Murang’a Seal as they sit top of the table on 60 points, and have one match in hand over their closest challengers.
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Most importantly, the Glamour Boys have a 10-point lead over third-placed Migori Youth who have also played a game more than them.
With the top two gaining automatic promotion to the Football Kenya Federation Premier League (FKFPL), it will take some monumental drop off for Shabana to miss out and they can even secure promotion early if they win their match in hand, which would give them an unassailable 12-point advantage over Migori.
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With that in mind, the club is already planning for how they will navigate the top flight which they will be returning to for the first time since 2006 and unlike many newly-promoted sides, they plan to do things differently.
“One thing that is motivating our squad is an agreement we have made with them. As a team, we are not going to drop anybody from the squad not unless a player gets a good offer and decides to leave,” Shabana Secretary General Nyanchoka Kerama told Pulse Sports.
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“Our agreement is with the players and technical bench. We want to have the same team and maybe add a little experience like three players but we maintain the squad.
“We have seen other teams once they get promotion, they drop like 90 percent of the team that assisted them gain promotion.
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The former Gor Mahia defender feels life in Dar would have been unbearable had he not rescued a point in his first Kariakoo Derby.
“However, we will give the players an opportunity because they have fought for it, they have proved that they are ready for the next challenge. Bringing in more players will end the unity we have in the team so we have to give them that opportunity.”
Shabana’s next match is a derby clash against local rivals Gusii FC on Sunday and Sammy Okoth’s men will not just be going for the three points and bragging rights but also to exert revenge, having lost the corresponding fixture 1-0 in February.