The stage is set for tomorrow’s (Sunday 23rd June) grand finale of the annual Chapa Dimba Na Safaricom National ladies final where Nairobi’s Acakoro Girls will take on stylish Queens from Rift Valley at the Kinoru Stadium in Meru County.
The winner stands to pocket a cool Ksh.1m in cash prize while the losing finalist will walk away with Ksh.500, 000 courtesy of sponsors Safaricom Ltd in conjunction with Football Kenya Federation (FKF).
Kitale Queens qualified for the finals after thrashing Barcelona Ladies 6-1 in a one- sided semifinal held on Friday at the newly refurbished Kinoru Stadium in Meru County.
Metrine Nanjala netted the opening goal for the energized Kitale Queens in the 20th minute before Daisy Busia scored the second in the 38th minuteThe first half ending 2-0 in favour of the Queens. The second half saw Peris Nafula and Agneta Marondo each score a brace for Kitale Queens in the 65th & 72nd minutes, and 70th & 82nd minutes respectively.
Barcelona’s star Jane Njeri scored a late penalty for her team in the 91st with the score line reading 6-1 after the final whistle.
“This was a good game though it did not go our way. We are glad we did our best. Our supportive fans gave energy to the players, boosting their morale and the girls responded accordingly. The game was not just on our side,” said Barcelona coach Emman Gullat.
Acakoro Ladies also booked a date in the grand finale after displaying a skillful match against Changamwe Ladies wining 4-2 in regulation time. Sylvia Makhungu gave the Nairobians an early lead scoring a set-piece in the 19th minute before Catherine Awuor netted a hat-trick in the 21st, 35th & 93rd minutes. Changamwe Ladies dominated the second half with Saumu Kahindi and Nancy Akinyi scoring in the 46th & 50th minutes respectively.
‘We played very well today and won the semis. We have a tough opponent in the finals but we will do our best,” said Carol Auma, Captain Acakoro Ladies.
The losing Semifinalists, Barcelona Ladies and Changamwe Ladies pocketed Ksh.250,000 cash reward each.
