Karabondi FC has been named the Homa Bay County champions after beating Mbita High School 1-0 in a hard-fought match played at the Wakiaga Polytechnic Grounds.
Karabondi, popularly known as the Dark Horse, secured their win with a penalty kick in the 23rd minute, expertly taken by Brian Odhiambo after Mbita defender Isaac Elshadai handled the ball in the box.
"This is our first time participating in the Chapa Dimba tournament and emerging as county champions is something we are immensely proud of,” said Karabondi head coach Jacob Otieno.
"We have experienced a well-organised tournament and I want to encourage Safaricom to continue with the spirit as it helps expose many untapped talents.
Otieno added: “ We knew the finals were not going to be a walk in the park since Mbita is a tough team to beat. They were very strong in the second half and nearly equalised. However, my players managed to defend our first-half goal.”
In the girls’ category, Ogande Girls edged Alara Girls from Karachuonyo 2-0 to lift the title.
Mercy Amuomo opened the scores in the ninth minute after receiving a cross from Julin Zena. She doubled the scores in the 77th minute to seal the win.
The brace took her tally to eight goals, the same as teammate, Joy Marvelous.
Amuomo was named the Most Valuable Player, winning a prize of Sh10,000, including a TVET Scholarship courtesy of the Safaricom Foundation.
In Migori county, Awendo Academy beat Kangeso FC 4-2 on penalties to win the county final. The teams were at 0-0 at the end of regulation time.
Agenga Girls thrashed Awendo Queens 6-0 to claim the girls’ title. Selphar Lugaye scored a hat-trick, Eunice Akinyi netted a brace and Christine Akeyo completed the rout.
