St Cecilia Misikhu hockey girls booked a semifinal slot as the Federation of East Africa Secondary Schools Sports Association entered Day 5 here at the St. Constantine grounds in Arusha, Tanzania.
The other Kenya representative Nyamira must win their match today against Uganda’s Bweranyange College to proceed to the last four. Misikhu won their last Pool 'A' match against hosts Lindi 3-0 yesterday to maintain their unbeaten run and coach Robert Kanga has challenged the players to extend the good run and win the title altogether.
The Western region outfit had won against their compatriots Nyamira 3-0, Bweranyangi of Uganda 2-0 and Old Kampala 4-0 in their previous group matches. Misikhu’s Rachael Khamala scored a brace for the visitors in the 12 and 14th minutes as Yvette Sonia added another goal in the 23rd minute.
Kanga said it has been 10 years since they won the title and exuded the confidence of winning the title this time around. Trans Nzoia are defending champions but were ousted at the regional games.
“It has been long since we won the title. We are making a come back this year after failing to make the trip to Rwanda last year. In 2017 in Uganda, we finished second behind Sinyolo who again are not here and this on its own is a push for us to do better,” noted Kanga.
He added: “Finishing the group stage without conceding a goal is a statement enough and we hope to build on that. The players are in good form and really, we can only hope for the best.”
Newcomers Nyamira, however, have a match against Bweranyange as they seek to book the remaining semi-final slot in Pool ‘A’. The Nyanza outfit won against Old Kampala 2-0 in their fourth match yesterday having lost to Misikhu 0-3 before they recovered to win against host Lindi 5-0. Jane Otieno and Berly Ochieng scored in the 1st and 40th minutes for Nyamira in their match against Ugandans.
Team’s coach Eliakim Obondo said they will have to rise up to the occasion in their match against the Ugandans if they hope to secure a slot in the last four.
“It’s our first time at this stage but really we are not looking at that development now. We are focused as we want to play in the semifinals and go all the way to the finals where we hope to meet Misikhu and see what happens from there. It was challenging at first for the players since they are not used to playing on the grass. They have now gotten the grip and they are raring to go,” noted Obondo.
On the other hand, champions St Antony’s Kitale boys hockey team won against Namilyango College of Uganda 4-0 to secure their semifinal slot at the same venue. Noel Cheboi (10), Lorgon Mabuka (34), Glen Lusweti (48) and Oscar Kibet (51) scored for the Western Region outfit. At Anthony’s will now line up against Ntare of Uganda in their last pool match.
