Kenya must finish in the top two positions in the Junior Africa Hockey Cup to book a ticket for the Junior World Cup next year, men's national Under-21 coach Michael Malungu has said.
Kenya represented the continent in the Youth Olympics in 2018 in Argentina and hope to grace the global U-21 show. The African qualifiers are set for Ghana in March 2021.
The Western Jaguars tactician, who doubles up as senior national team assistant coach, said should the country make it to India next year, the team stands a better chance to take part in the 2024 Olympic Games.
"The current squad has taken their game to another level individually at the club level.
"USIU's Samwel Silong, Jaguars' Ivan Ludiali and Robinson Omutekete have all proved themselves.
"Brian Ogenche is a key player for Strathmore and if you look at what Richard Njuki did, he was the reason why we went to Argentina. The rest were exceptional and if we can maintain that momentum, we can achieve our objective. We want to be among the best two teams, " he said.
He added, "As a country, we are rebuilding for the future. The team that went to South Africa for the Olympic Qualifiers last year was made up of rookies and this experiences over the time will enable the boys to believe in themselves which will in turn make us stand a better chance of qualifying for the Olympics," he observed.
"Best teams in the world including India played alongside Kenya in Argentina. Players need to start believing in themselves because we have nothing to fear."
Kenya last participated in the Olympics in 1988 and 32 years down the line is a long time. With the right environment, the current generation can return the country to the global status.
Malungu tipped the players to step up to the senior side and grab the opportunity when it presents itself. "I believe in the next call up, you will see quite a number of the Under-21 players roped into the senior set up. These are chances they ought to take advantage of."
