Lead image for St Joseph’s Girls, Nyakach hunt for football title at East Africa school games .
The six-year drought has ignited a fierce Kenyan renaissance on the regional stage. Standing on the precipice of history are newly crowned national champions St Joseph’s Girls Kitale, and runners-up Nyakach Girls, who are spearheading Kenya’s mission to reclaim the elusive Federation of East Africa Secondary Schools Sports Association (FEASSSA) girls’ football title, starting today.
The last time Kenya won this title was on August 19, 2018, when Kwale Girls beat Uganda’s Kawempe Muslim Secondary 1-0 in the final at Ubworoherane Stadium in Musanze, Rwanda.
And as the finest teams converge in Morogoro, Tanzania, St Joseph’s and Nyakach carry not just the hopes of their schools, but Kenya’s aspirations. The country is desperate to break the six-year title drought by winning again.
Since 2018, Uganda has won all the girls’ football titles, except in 2020 and 2021 when the championships were not held due to Covid-19 pandemic. The title drought is weighing heavily on Kenyan teams, whose mission is clear: to bring the trophy home.
This task could not have been entrusted to better teams. Last week, St Joseph’s and Nyakach met in the national finals in Thika, and played to a 1-1 draw in regular time before the Rift Valley Region team beat their Nyanza rivals 8-7 on penalties.
That final could be repeated in Morogoro, as both teams have been placed in different groups. They will therefore only meet in the knock-out stages if they both make it through the group phase.
“We know what is at stake. We came here as national champions, and our aim is to win the title. The girls are focused, and they are ready,” said St Joseph’s coach, Francis Ojillo.
The loss in Thika was painful for Nyakach but coach Chrispin Odindo says it made his team stronger.