Harambee Starlets set to hit camp for South Sudan ties

Harambee Starlets are set to hit camp on Saturday, October 9, 2021, ahead of the first round of the Women's Africa Cup of Nations against South Sudan that could see them inch closer to their World Cup dream.

The fixture will be played in two legs, with the first one being played on October 20, 2021 and the return on October 24, 2021.

According to information on Confederation of African Football's (CAF) website, Harambee Starlets are set to enjoy double home advantage as South Sudan are slated to play their home match at Nyayo National Stadium, the same location that Starlets will be using for their home match as well.

This will be Harambee Starlets best chance to book a slot at the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup as the tournament will also double as the African qualifiers to the global showpiece whereby the top four teams will qualify for the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, and two more teams will advance to the inter-confederation play-offs.

Charles Okere, currently with the Rising Starlets in Uganda, will be hoping to kick start his sojourn with the senior team on a high after a catastrophic start with the U20 side against Uganda who beat them 7-2 in the first leg of the second round of FIFA U20 Women World Cup Qualifier.

This fixture was originally scheduled for June 2021 but CAF postponed all round one matches to October, with dates for the second round set to be confirmed later but were initially scheduled for 14-23 February 2022.

The winner in this fixture will face off with the winner between Uganda and Ethiopia in the second round to determine who will go to the main event.

Morocco, being the host, have already qualified and await the other 11 teams to join them from the qualifying rounds in the first-ever edition to feature 12 teams. The 2020 edition would have been the first to have that number of participating teams but it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.