Tusker's Ogam fired up for season finale after injury setback

Tusker Football Club’s prolific forward, Ryan-Wesley Ogam, has declared his readiness to face Kakamega Homeboyz in the final fixture of the 2024/2025 season after fully recovering from a knee injury that sidelined him for three months.

The 20-year-old, who underwent surgery in April 2025, rejoined full team training at the beginning of June after being cleared by the club’s medical team.

Before his injury setback, Ogam had been in sensational form in his debut Premier League campaign, scoring 15 goals and providing three assists in just 13 matches during the first leg of the season.

Remarkably, he achieved this despite missing the opening three matches of the season due to a separate knock. His strong start had him on course to reach an ambitious 30-goal target before injury struck.

Speaking to Citizen Digital, the former Rainbow FC attacking midfielder shared his excitement at returning to the pitch.

“It’s good that I am fully fit now and can play again and help my team. I have been doing well in training and more so scoring goals, and I thank God I finally overcame it. I am ready to play on Sunday and help the team again,” said Ogam.

Reflecting on the goals missed due to his injury lay-off, Ogam expressed his disappointment at not hitting his personal target.

“I rue the chances lost of achieving the target I had set. I had a target of scoring 15 goals in the first leg then doing another 15 in the second leg to hit my season target, but this was cut short by the injury. I left having scored 15 goals in 13 matches.

"I would have scored more were it not for another injury I suffered after three matches into the start of the season. Were it not for the injury that kept me out of three matches, I am sure I would have hit my first-leg target by now,” rued the left-footed striker.

During his rehabilitation, Ogam immersed himself in match analysis, using the downtime to review his performances and identify areas for improvement.

“I didn’t have much to do besides reviewing match clips. I’ve learned a lot and am working on what I did not get right in training. Sometimes I would feel bad in the stands seeing the team losing or dropping points, knowing had I been fit I would have helped the team.

"Even the fans used to ask me to get into the pitch and help the team, but I could not. This affected me mentally,” he recounted.

Ogam, a former Kakamega High School alumnus, began his football journey at Laser Galaxy before stints with Sunrise FC of Umoja Estate, Nairobi. He recounted the emotional toll the surgery news took on him.

“It was hard to come to terms with the news that I would be operated on. After hearing that I would be out for at least 10 weeks, it was tough. This was happening to me for the first time, so imagining I would be out for such a long time without kicking a ball was not getting into my head, because this has been my daily activity and I enjoy doing it — it’s part of my daily life,” he narrated.

“I thank my family, relatives, friends, fans, and the management for the support they accorded me during my recovery,” he added.

Ogam’s absence for the last 11 league matches severely impacted Tusker’s attacking threat. The Brewers managed only four wins, four draws, and three losses during that stretch — a run that dented their title hopes.

In Ogam’s absence, coach Charles Okere turned to academy graduate David Polepole to lead the line, but was injured shortly after. The tactician then repurposed midfielder Deogracious Ojok as a striker, a move that paid off with Ojok netting four goals in six league matches.

Ogam’s impressive form earned him a call-up to the national team in November, making the cut among 11 new faces selected by then Harambee Stars head coach Engin Firat for the crucial CHAN qualifier return-leg against South Sudan. The match ended 1-1, sending South Sudan through on a 3-1 aggregate.

Ogam joined Tusker after completing a six-month loan spell with Elite Falcons in Dubai in July 2024, having seen moves to the United States and Sweden fall through midway through the year.

Now fully fit and hungry, Ogam is expected to spearhead Tusker’s attack in the season’s final showdown, with fans hopeful he can finish the season on a high and carry momentum into the next campaign.