They stood in the scotching sun for more than two hours waiting for their favourite teams, Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards.
They blew their vuvuzelas and sounded their isikuti as they waited for their teams to arrive.
It was a sea of green (for Gor) and blue and white stripes (AFC), as football fever gripped Nairobi’s Nyayo National Stadium, the venue of the much-awaited local derby between Kenya’s oldest clubs, on Sunday.
And when the buses carrying the teams arrived, supporters rose to show love to their preferred sides ahead of the nail-biting clash.
Gor players, led by captain Jerim Onyango, could be seen smiling at their chanting fans, same for the Leopards, who had flown two days earlier from their camp in Mumias.
Carnival begins
As Leopards’ midfielder Oscar Kadenge had his first attempt at goal, the carnival began.
Stamping the concrete floor, fans on the left side of the VIP dais, Leopards’ supporters, chanted: “AFC, AFC, AFC…”
Their counterparts on the opposite side were not to be outdone as they urged on their team with songs and chants.
Gor Mahia, or the green army as they are popular known, was here to tame the leopard as they did in July with a 3-1 win.
But when each of the three goals was scored, the spectators from the left side rose from their seats, threw their arms in the air and roared with such force it felt like the walls would cave in.
Rarely has Leopards been in such an outwardly confident mood about winning a Kenyan Premier League match.
Despite their record, there has always been a particular nervousness about playing their perennial rivals, Gor Mahia.
The importance of the match was evident by the various newspaper headlines on Monday.
The Daily Nation led the field with its headline: AFC stage Koops d’état on K’Ogalo.
The Gor crowd groaned when Leopards scored its first goal, just minutes in as a latecomer cursed loudly when he learnt the scoreboard read in the opposition’s favour.
It was a football crowd in the purest sense — riveted to the field, incident-free and impervious to the Bolton versus Chelsea English Premier League match that was going on at that time.
Gor’s counter-attacks were greeted with cheers and claps as near-misses by the Leopards generated groans.
Corner kicks were applauded before they were taken. Routine saves by Leopards’ goalkeeper Patrick Matasi earned more applause from his supporters while attracting boos in equal measure from the Gor’s side.
Leopards scored three times with no reply in the entire 90 minutes, but their second goal courtesy of Mike Barasa in the 62nd minute was ear-shattering, and followed by spontaneous (and obligatory) high-fives and chants of “Ingwe, Ingwe, Ingwe!”.
Still, the green army stood quietly as fans stared, hoping their players would pull out a dramatic win at the last minute, as has been their wont.
It did not happen and most Gor fans in attendance were left heartbroken.
They had just lost their bragging rights to their ‘in-laws’.
Humphrey Kariuki Ndegwa a leader in business and a soccer fanatic was also spotted in the field.