Starlets return with focus on next season’s calendar

Cameroon Ngo Mbeleck Genevieve dribbles between Starlet Wendy Asol and Kinuthia Mary g.jpg
Cameroon Ngo Mbeleck Genevieve dribbles between Starlet Wendy Asol and Kinuthia Mary g.jpg

After exiting the ongoing

Africa Women Cup of Nations in Cameroon, Kenya

women’s football team, Harambee Starlets have

switched focus to International competitions and

friendlies lined up for next year.

Harambee Starlets, who were making their debut

to the biennial event, lost all their Group ‘B’ matches

against Ghana 3-1, Mali 3-1 and 4-0 to the champions

Nigeria last Saturday.

Speaking on arrival from Cameroon, Harambee

Starlets team manager and former national team

player, Doreen Nabwire, said the team has received

invitation to play in next year’s Turkey Gold City

tournament and are scheduled to visit Germany for

friendlies with women’s Bundesliga sides.

Nabwire said team’s participation in the AWCON

has been a good learning curve for the players and

the technical bench at large but was quick to note

that for the East African to match their West Africans

counterparts in future, a lot still needs to be

done.

“Really, it has to start with the players themselves.

The question is are they doing enough on

their own and are they on good nutrition? At some

point, individual brilliance matters, where teams collectivity

has failed,” observed the official.

She added: “Football Kenya Federation continue

to support the national teams and going forward, we

can only hope for the best. But first things first, we

need a competitive women’s league. However, it can

only be competitive if sponsors come on board and

we therefore appeal to companies and well-wishers

to join forces and sponsor the league. We want to be

in the next edition of AWCON and hopefully, qualify

for 2019 World Cup.”