Gor Mahia has officially unveiled Jonathan McKinstry the new Head Coach in an event held in Nairobi. The North Irishman has previously handled Uganda, Rwanda, and Sierra Leone national teams.
McKinstry takes over from Andreas Spiers of Germany whose contract with the club expired early this month.
As Head Coach of the Uganda National Team, the ‘Uganda Cranes’ (2019 – 2021) he led Uganda to win CECAFA 2019 and over his tenure delivered a WIN from 2 in every 3 games, going undefeated in over 8 in every 10 games played. This represented the highest ‘win’ and ‘undefeated’ rate achieved by a Uganda National Team Coach in over 15 years.
He was International Manager and Head Coach of the Rwanda National Football Team (2015-16). Within just 17 months he led Rwanda to a number of highs – including their first ever appearance in the knockout stages of a major international tournament (Quarter-finals of CHAN, Jan 2016) and finished runner-up in CECAFA (Dec 2105), being named ‘Coach of the Tournament’ for his efforts.
Across 2013-14, he was Head Coach of the Sierra Leone National Men’s Football team. Within just over a year, he had led Sierra Leone to their highest ever FIFA World and African rankings – 7th in Africa and 50th in the World (August 2014).
He has also been Head Coach of Saif Sporting Club, Bangladesh Premier League (2018-19); and FK Kauno Zalgiris, Lithuanian A-Lyga (2017-18). He is a European (UEFA), American (NSCAA) and university-qualified football coach.
McKinstry will be expected to take the team to new levels after the club ended the KPL season in third place on 58 points behind champions Tusker FC and second-placed Kakamega Homeboyz FC who finished on 66 points apiece.