NAIROBI, July 10 (Xinhua) -- The new coach of Kenya's most successful soccer club, Gor Mahia on Monday pledged to recruit local support staff to help nurture young talent in a sporting genre that is popular in the country.
Dylan Kerr, a British national who arrived in Kenya on Sunday, said he will impart expertise to local staff that will be in a position to emulate him even in his absence.
"It is a common practice for foreign coaches to troop overseas for coaching stints with their own prop-up personnel, but I have opted to employ the services of local people," the Englishman remarked during the occasion to unveil him officially in Nairobi.
He said the club's caretaker coach, Zedekiah Otieno, relinquished his role as head coach on Sunday for the assistant position.
Gor Mahia Chairman, Ambrose Rachier welcomed the new tactician to the club and told him he has a free hand to perform his coaching duties without meddling from interested parties.
"Nobody will interfere with your work and we set you free to do your best for the sake of the club," said Rachier
Gor Mahia, that happen to be Kenya's most followed team, have won the national league a record 15 times and have also won the African Cup Winners Cup Club Tournament in 1987.
During the 2015 season, the team ended the league with an unbeaten record and in the process also set a new Kenyan Premier League with a total of 78 records.
Kerr replaces the immediate former coach, Brazilian Jose Marcelo Ferreira, aka Ze Maria, who quit the club halfway through the season for a coaching stint in Albania.
The retired defender played for Sheffield Wednesday FC, Leeds United FC, Reading FC and Burnley FC who have played in the top division English Premier League as well as Doncaster Rovers FC among other teams.
Kerr, 50, was born in Malta and has a 13-year experience in coaching starting at Phoenix, Arizona at United States before hired as a Football Development Officer at Scottish side Argyll and Bute in 2005.
In 2009, Kerr was hired as an assistant manager by South African club Mpumalanga Black Aces. He also coached Tanzanian giants Simba SC in 2015-2016 season.
He will take over from former Gor captain Zedekiah Otieno who was in charge of two league games as caretaker after Ze Maria left for Albanian side FK Tirana.
