National champions Nairobi Water Queens coach Jack Ochieng has boldly predicted his charges will dominate women's handball for a long time.
Speaking after his team beat Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) 29-28 in a close-knit Super Cup finals over the weekend, Ochieng said they have put in place strategies to ensure a stranglehold on the national title for many years to come.
"It was a close game. But there were never any doubts in my mind that we will eventually win it. We are the better team and will be so for a while," Ochieng said.
Nairobi Water have signed Mildred Wesonga and Ochieng believes the left-back will add more spine to the team when the new season throws off in May.
One of Ochieng's chief concerns was the woman-to-woman marking KDF successfully employed to keep Brenda Ariviza, his main offensive player, at bay.
"I watched the game from the sides and saw areas that we will now have to work on going forward. We must go back to drawing boards. I must work on how to release her in such situations. She is my main best offensive player and we must find a way to keep her involved in our offense," he said.
He also hailed his assistant, Thodosia Sangora, who handled the team in the finals in his absence, saying he did a splendid job.
Regarding Ariviza, Sangoro concurred with his boss's comments, noting that the danger woman can become even more lethal than the five goals scored in the final.
"We will have to train more without her so that we see what are the options if she is marked out of a game," Sangoro observed.
Captain Gladys Chilo, who led Water Queens' scoring tally with six goals, attributed the late collapse to their mental set up.
"It's only in the previous match and this one that we struggled against them. It's not that we were bad. We had a good work rate. But endurance caused us a bit," Chilo said.
In the men's final, National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) beat Kenya Defence Forces 29-26 to also retain the trophy.
NCPB tactician Dan Eshikumo said they had to balance the game by matching the intensity of the soldiers.
"It was a close game. But our plan was to balance the game. We made sure that each time they scored, we restored the advantage," he said.
