Harambee Starlets shift focus to Awcon qualifiers
Harambee Starlets players huddle together for prayer at half time during their Turkish Women Cup opening match against Northern Ireland at the Gold City Sport Complex in Alanya, Turkey on March 4, 2020. PHOTO | COURTESY
What you need to know:
- Kenya amassed three points from as many matches after beating Northern Ireland 2-0 in the opener last Wednesday before losing to Chile 5-0 last Saturday
- Ouma was without regulars Annedy Kundu, Ruth Ingosi, Cynthia Shilwatso and Vivian Adhiambo in Turkey
- Kenya and Tanzania last met in Council of East and Central Africa Football Association (Cecafa) Women Championship final ion Dar es Salaam last year
Kenya national women's football team, Harambee Starlets, coach David Ouma says he has his work well cut out ahead of their first round Africa Women Cup of Nations (Awcon) qualifier against Tanzania planned for April 6 to 14.
Starlets bagged bronze in the Turkish Women Cup after finishing third in Group 'B' behind Chile and Ghana who beat them 3-1 on Tuesday.
Kenya amassed three points from as many matches after beating Northern Ireland 2-0 in the opener last Wednesday before losing to Chile 5-0 last Saturday.
"Despite the results, I commend the players for a job well done. They were consistent, confident and disciplined picking up lessons from top teams like Chile who have left a lasting impression on the young players on what professional football is about," said Harambee Starlets coach David Ouma on phone from Turkey on Tuesday.
Ouma, who was without regulars Annedy Kundu, Ruth Ingosi, Cynthia Shilwatso and Vivian Adhiambo in Turkey, was impressed by youngsters Sylvia Makungu from Acakoro Ladies and Sheryl Angachi who was named best midfielder in the Under-19 category of the tournament.
"We clearly have a lot of work to do but I'm happy that we at least got three points and I got to gauge the players' capabilities against top teams. The loss to Ghana made me realise how much we missed some of our best players like Annedy Kundu, because the goals we conceded to Ghana could be easily saved," explained Ouma.
Kenya and Tanzania last met in Council of East and Central Africa Football Association (Cecafa) Women Championship final ion Dar es Salaam last year where Starlets emerged 2-0 winners to bag the regional title.
The aggregate winner of first round will face off with either DR Congo against Sao Tome and Principe, between June 1 to 9.
The second round winners will qualify for the 12-team competition scheduled to be held between November 28 and December 12.
The top three teams in the Awcon will proceed to the 2023 Fifa Women's World Cup.
Starlets last featured in the Awcon in 2016 in Cameroon but failed to qualify for the 2018 edition after losing to Equatorial Guinea during the qualifying phase.
