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In memory of Tony Ngare, the senior Journalist who perished in the ill fated Ethiopia Airlines

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By Silas Nyanchwani via FB

Rather sad, learning that Antony Ngare, finest and funniest sportswriter ever, if Kenya had one, a gunner no less, who would have thoroughly enjoyed our win today perished in the ill-fated Ethiopian flight.

When a famous person quits their column in the newspaper, fans are always worried who will take their place. When Maina Kageni quit writing his sports column for Pulse back in the 2000s, it is Tony Ngare who took over and back in college we read voraciously.

He was intelligent. I remember two moments from his column. We had played Man U or Barcelona and won from the fewest chances we created and the team, must have been Man U or a fierce rival like Tottenham had created several chances, but no conversion…he had used a line like, “if you create 30 chances and you don’t score, and I create two chances and convert them, who is more efficient, you do the maths…”I never forgot the line, especially back in the day when Mouurinho had taught us that sexy football never wins matches. There was another Man U game that we drew the last minute with a William Gallas mysterious goal, to date, no Arsenal fan knows how it went in. As usual, we turned to his column for some explanation, but equally, he had been distracted and annoyingly, there were no replays. We still don’t know how it went in.

Beyond sports, he was a fine lifestyle columnist, writing on city issues, motoring and some bit of reporting.

I only stumbled upon him once in the newsroom and he was at his usual boisterous self. When you are young and you go to the newsroom and you see your heroes, it makes you hope that one day, you will be deskmates.

By the time, I joined Standard, he had moved on NEMA, and when I had an assignment that required that I talk to NEMA, one of my editors sent me to him and on phone, and in email, he was more than willing to help me, though I think the story died.

Just seen the letter his daughter wrote him last month on bis approaching birthday, and he said he wanted to cry. Sadly, the daughter will never see him again. Few things can be more tragic.

May he rest.

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