CECAFA Women's:Harambee Starlets overcome poor preparations to hand Burundi football lessons
.jpg)
.jpg)
Reading Time: 2min | Sun. 15.06.25. | 18:20
The team had a single day to prepare for the tournament that will serve as build up for the 2026 Africa Women’s Cup of Nations (WAFCON) final round qualifier against Gambia
Harambee Starlets put behind their ill preparations to launch their bid for the CECAFA Senior Women's Championship title in the best way possible following their 3-0 win over Burundi at the Azam Complex on Sunday.
The team had limited preparation time for the tournament considering that coach Beldine Odemba named the squad comprised of 23 players five days ago.
Follow our WhatsApp channel for more news
Further, social media reports claimed that a handful of influential players had threatened to boycott the tournament in protest to the alleged delay in getting allowances from last assignments.
While at it, coach Odemba reportedly threw in the towel amid the sharp criticism following the team's 5-1 mailing at the hands of Morocco in a friendly match played last week.
However, the league winning tactician with Kenya Police Bullets, rubbished the resignation rumours by announcing the team for the tournament and overseeing the final touches before traveling to Tanzania.
The off-the-pitch drama, issues and poor preparations were deemed as a factors that could strongly affect Starlets in the opening match against Burundi.
However, Odemba and her back room staff quickly engineered a turnaround to ensure Kenya extends her dominance against the match day opponents, considering that Starlets had not lost in the preceding three encounters.
Further, the CAF A licensed tactician will be pleased with how the team responded to critics and recovered from the back-to-back losses against; Ivory Coast and Morocco.
Odemba went for a blend of experienced and young players when naming the starting team for the assignment, making several changes in the first eleven that was on duty against Morocco.
It took Martha Amunyolet a minute to break the deadlock after she controlled a well-weighted long pass, before bulldozing her way past two markers to lob past the advancing goalkeeper.
The forward was in the mood again, as she chipped the ball over the Burundian goalkeeper again in the seventh minute to seal her brace, as well as extend Starlets' lead that remained unchallenged in the remainder of the first half.
Starlets spent the better part of the second half managing the game and containing Oliver Niyungeko's charges, who worked overtime to squeeze the ball past Annedy Kundu.
Hopes of salvaging at least a point in the game went up in the air when second-half substitute Faith Mboya netted the third goal in the dying minutes of the game.
Mboya, who has been on top of her game at club level, curled the ball from the edge of the box to open her Starlets goal account.
