Lakers hockey club hope to build on their 2019 fourth-place finish in the Kenya Hockey Union (KHU) League as they brace up for their season opener against United States International University (USIU-A) Spartans on Sunday.
Coach Austin Tuju said while finishing third will be an improvement, second place is a realistic target for the lakeside club who are in the second season in the Premier League.
Despite having the home-ground advantage, Tuju warned his players against complacency. Lakers were beaten 2-1 by Spartans at the City Park Stadium in 2019 but drew 1-1 in the reverse fixture.
"Lakers surprised many by finishing fourth in 2019 for the first time in their history with the majority of the players playing in the top tier for the first time. With maturity and understanding of the demands of the league, second place is the bare minimum," Tuju bragged.
He, however, warned that the Spartans were no pushovers and they will have to be on top of their game and approach the match cautiously. "Being at home, we will need to utilise the 60 minutes and charge for victory," he warned.
He went on: "It is a bonus to play at home as the operation cost is low. We shouldn't have no excuse not to win the match in as much as we have other problems of our own."
Tuju said they hope to continue producing more players for the national team after five were selected for the biannual African Nations Championship in January.
Aurelia Opondo, twin sisters Alice and Maureen Owiti, Vivian Onyango, and goalkeeper Millicent Adhiambo did duty for Kenya in Ghana.
"It was beyond our expectations to see five players from Lakers in Kenyan colours. We endeavour to refine more players with the capacity to play for the country as soon as possible," he said.
In the meantime, assistant captain Ashley Akinyi steps in for regular skipper Linah Barasa, who is unavailable because of work commitments.
