It’s D-Day as Uganda battle Kenya in CECAFA U-18 Boys Championship final

It’s the final day of the CECAFA U-18 Boys Championship 2023 as Uganda face hosts Kenya in the final at the Jomo Kenyatta Stadium in Kisumu on Friday.

But before the final, the play-off match to determine which team takes third place will see Rwanda battling Tanzania.

The two finalists each topped their groups ahead of the semi final stage, with Uganda edging Rwanda 1-0 in the knock out round, while Kenya overcame Tanzania 4-3 in penalties after the two teams had tied goalless.

Salim Babu, the Kenya head coach has made it clear that although facing Uganda will not be an easy task, he has called upon Kenyans to come in large numbers and motivate the team. ” Our team is well prepared for the final, but we shall also need all the support, ” added Babu.

The home side will look to their leading scorers Aldrine Kipchirchir Kibet who has netted three goals together with Humphrey Omondi Aroko and Louise Ingavi who have two goals each.

But the Ugandan coach Morley Byekwaso Ochama who also led the Uganda team to the final of the AFCON U-20 held in Mauritania 2021 says his players have what it takes to win the final and carry the trophy back home. ” It is not always easy playing a host in the final, but my team has kept improving since the tournament started and they are motivated for the final, ” added the Ugandan coach.

Although Uganda has not scored many goals in the Championship, they will look to the industrious Travis Mutyaba who also featured in the CECAFA U-15 Championship in Eritrea in 2019.

All the eight teams used the Zonal Championship to prepare ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) U-20 qualifiers next year.

All collected results

Somalia 0 Rwanda 1

Kenya 5 Sudan 0

Tanzania 1 Uganda 0

Zanzibar 1 South Sudan 0

Kenya 1 Rwanda 0

Somalia 3 Sudan 0

Tanzania 1 South Sudan 2

Zanzibar 1 Uganda 2

Rwanda 3 Sudan 0

Kenya 4 Somalia 1

Uganda 2 South Sudan 0

Tanzania 1 Zanzibar 1

Semis

Uganda 1 Rwanda 0

Kenya 0 (4) Tanzania 0 (3)