Kakamega High coach out to keep Nzoia region title
What you need to know:
- The Green Commandos are in a tough pool ‘B’ that has Kapenguria Secondary, Vihiga Secondary and Mundika Secondary in the games which kick off in Busia Thursday.
Kakamega High School coach Brendan Mwinamo has admitted the national champions face tough time as they seek to defend the football title when the Airtel Rising Stars Nzoia region championships begin on Thursday.
The Green Commandos are in a tough pool ‘B’ that has Kapenguria Secondary, Vihiga Secondary and Mundika Secondary in the games which kick off in Busia Thursday.
Mwinamo, whose side defeated Chavakali Secondary School 4-0 in the final of last year’s edition of the games, singled out former national champions Kapenguria Secondary from West Pokot County as a big threat to their title ambitions in the preliminaries.
“It is always difficult to deal with an experienced team like Kapenguria which has been making frequent appearances at the regional level,” said Mwinamo.
Mwinamo, however, said his charges are in top form and are raring to go. He revealed that his strikers Alfred Wekesa, Eric Ouma and Apollo Otieno would be in the starting line-up in their quest to keep the title.
Pool ‘A’ has former East African champions St Anthony’s of Trans Nzoia County, Bungoma County’s Friends School Misikhu, Lodwar High School from Turkana County and Nambale Secondary School from Busia County.
The girls’ category present an interesting scenario and it is difficult to predict which teams are likely to have an upper hand, considering that two among them have at one time clinched the national title as well as the East and Central Africa crown.
West Pokot County’s Tartar Secondary and Wiyeta Secondary from Trans Nzoia are outright title favourites. Tartar lifted the national crown in 2012 after beating St John’s Kaloleni 5-0 on post-match penalties in the finals that were held at Shanzu Teachers Training College in Mombasa.
Tartar went further to claim the East and Central Africa crown after they defeated Solidarity Secondary School of Rwanda 5-4, also on post-match penalty shoot-outs, to lift the 2013 title in Lira, Uganda.
Wiyeta struck twice, winning the national and the East and Central African titles in 2008. Both teams are in pool ‘B’ alongside St Bakhita’s Secondary School of Vihiga County and Busia County’s Kingandole Secondary School.
Boys’ pool ‘A’ has Kakamega County’s Ibinzo Secondary School, who in 2012 were knocked out of the national championships in the preliminary stage, Turkana County’s St Kevin’s, Chebukaka from Bungoma County and Busia County’s Bishop Sulumeti.
