Gor draw Rayon Sports in Cecafa Kagame Cup
What you need to know:
- The 12-team tournament is slated for the National Stadium and Chamadzi grounds in Dar es Salaam, between June 28 and July 12 this year.
- The top two teams from each pool as well the best two third place finishers will earn their place in the last eight stage of the competition.
Kenyan champions Gor Mahia have been drawn against Rwandese giants Rayon Sports in this year's Cecafa Kagame Cup.
The two teams are also in the same pool of this year' Caf Confederation Cup and drew 1-1 during their first encounter last month.
Gor Mahia, who emerged runners up in the 2015 edition held in Tanzania, will also face Burundi's Lydia Ludic and Ports from Djibouti in Group B.
The 12-team tournament is slated for the National Stadium and Chamadzi grounds in Dar es Salaam, between June 28 and July 12.
The 44-year old club championship returns this year after a three-year absence occasioned by lack of a financial partner.
Tanzania's Yanga are in Group C alongside arch-rivals Simba, Ethiopia’s St George and Dakadaha of Somalia. Group A has Tanzania’s Azam, who are the defending champions, Uganda’s Vipers, JKU from Zanzibar and Kator FC from South Sudan.
K’Ogalo are scheduled to open their campaign against Rayon Sport on Sunday, July 1, before taking on Lydia of Burundi on July 3. They will then wrap up their exploits at the group level with a match against Ports scheduled for July 4.
The top two teams from each pool as well the best two third-place finishers will earn their place in the last eight stage of the competition.
Cecafa General Secretary Nick Musonye, who released the draw and fixtures Tuesday morning, said that this year’s event will go on despite the financial challenges currently dogging the regional body.
He also told willing partners that their support in the tournament is welcome.
“We are doing it this year. The problem is usually the funds and this time we have secured the money in good time so there will be no disappointments.
“What we are working on is to ensure that our tournaments happen every year without fail, so we are trying to mitigate the challenges that we have faced over the years that have caused us to postpone or cancel the events.
“The women’s tournament is still on course and we have tentatively set for it to happen within the last two weeks of July,” he said of the Cecafa Women’s Championship that was scheduled for last month in Rwanda, but which was cancelled at the last minute.
The 7,000-seater Chamazi Stadium in Mbagala and the National Stadiums in Dar es Salaam have been set aside to host the matches, whose winner will be entitled to a Sh3 million cash award.
POOLS
Group A: Azam FC (Tanzania), Vipers SC (Uganda), JKU (Zanzibar), Kator FC (South Sudan)
Group B: Rayon Sports (Rwanda), Gor Mahia (Kenya), Lydia Ludic (Burundi), Ports (Djibouti)
Group C: Yanga (Tanzania), Simba (Tanzania), St. George (Ethiopia), Dakadaha (Somalia)
