From Tusker Outcast to Kenya's CHAN 2024 Hero: The Rise of Harambee Stars Goalkeeper Bryne Omondi

The Harambee Stars shotstopper has had to overcome alot of challenges to become the commanding presence he is in goal nowadays.

Bandari goalkeeper Byrne Omondi has endured a rather lengthy journey to where he is in his career right now.

Shortly after the referee blew the whistle for full time, following ten-man Harambee Stars upsetting the odds to beat Morocco at the ongoing 2024 African Nations Championships (CHAN) on home soil, the delight on his face said it all as he received his official man of the match award.

But behind that smile is a story of resilience, hard work, patience, and perseverance.

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Learning in the Shadows

His journey has not been too dissimilar to Aston Villa’s World Cup-winning goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez, who had to prove himself for several years before ascending to the top—from loan spells at lower-division clubs to becoming first choice by chance because the main keeper was suspended or injured.

“I have had to be second fiddle to keepers like Duncan Ochieng', Martin Musalia, David Okello, Farouk Shikalo and Patrick Matasi—experienced keepers who have played internationally. It was hard sometimes to even become second choice, let alone first,” Omondi told Pulse Sports back in 2023.

The 29-year-old goalkeeper says he had to learn to be mentally tough and resilient to overcome the torture of having to sit on the bench or not even making the squad most times, by opting to learn from the experienced heads.

“I was having to take the positives out of it by learning. It was not easy but I had to just give myself, be patient and hope for five years. They were telling me to stay patient for my chance.”

It is well documented that keepers can play to an old age at the highest level. Legendary Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon and Egyptian Essam El Hadary are living examples of it.

“With goalkeeping, you can play till you are 40, so I used to view the bright side of not playing, and now I am reaping rewards for my patience. Someone like Dunco was 38–39 when I was there, so it used to give me patience.”

Odhiambo completed his high school studies at Manguo High School in Limuru before joining Tusker in 2015. In 2016, he was transferred to Agrochemical on loan and then returned to the Brewers in 2017, where he spent two years before joining Posta Rangers permanently in 2019.

In 2021, he moved out on loan to Mathare United, where he was able to get a chance to play regularly. It was at Mathare where his skills were displayed, including the ability to nonchalantly play with the ball at his feet.

“At Mathare, I was grateful for the opportunity and chance to get a lot of playing time, but being good on the ball has always been part of my game. I used to play in midfield back home in Limuru and in high school. That is where my composure came from.

“Even at Tusker, I would train as a keeper and then go home and continue playing infield in order to learn how to be composed on the ball. At Manguo High School, I played as a midfielder between Forms One and Three and returned to the sticks in Form Four.

“Mathare helped a lot because in the Premier League, you can be pressed, so you have to be composed on the ball as a result.”

Taking the Gloves for Good

Following his loan spell at Mathare, Odhiambo left to join Zedekiah ‘Zico’ Otieno’s KCB at the start of the 2022/2023 season, but there, he had to overcome yet another obstacle of ousting an established international goalkeeper, Gabriel Andika.

“I knew my work was cut out when I joined KCB because Gabriel Andika is a quality goalkeeper. He has experience internationally, having been part of the squad that won the 2017 CECAFA Challenge Cup in Machakos. I knew competition would be there.

“I had to work hard to earn the opportunity to become a first-choice keeper. When you get a chance, you have to grab it with both hands. I played my first game against Homeboyz and we lost, but it was in the second game against Bandari that I believe I fully earned Zico’s trust.”

Odhiambo kept 13 clean sheets while Gabriel Andika kept seven. The Bankers possessed the best defensive record in the league and have the best shutout record.

He has since signed for Bandari, a club he has done well for, and is now on the verge of completing a move to record champions Gor Mahia.

One of the fundamentals of the modern keeper apart from being good with their distribution is the art of learning how to communicate and organise your teammates. Omondi has mastered the art to the letter, but admits it was not part of his game originally.

“My communication used to be very poor. I learnt a lot from Dunco and Matasi on communicating because both are serious goalkeepers who are no-nonsense between the sticks, which made me understand that I have to organise my defence.

“But first, it was important to also forge friendships with the outfielders so that it is easier to correct their mistakes as the game is going on, since as a keeper, you have the full picture of what is going on.”

The keeper is part of the Kenya squad that took part in the Mauritius Four Nations Tournament in June 2023, where he made his debut against Pakistan and amassed five caps before suffering an unfortunate injury in October during a friendly against Russia.

It is an injury that set him back, and it had to take since September 2024 to don national team colours again, during which he was in and out of the side even at club level as he battled fitness problems.

Even before the tournament, he was a doubt through injury, and it had to take some convincing for him to force his way into Benni McCarthy’s thinking.

 Now, he is the first-choice goalkeeper, and he has kept two clean sheets, conceding one so far as Kenya are now on the brink of making the quarter-finals for the first time in history and the better he performs, the higher his chances of securing a move abroad even as he nears joining Gor Mahia.

“It is every Kenyan player’s dream to represent the Harambee Stars. I want to give my best so that I can give myself the best possible chance of becoming first choice and more caps so that it can be easier to even go professional,” he said at the time.

“I want to play abroad because I will push myself to the limit in order to improve myself.”

This is an update on a story originally published in June 2023.