African Games: Vintage player Moim explains how they toppled Nigeria

Conditioned Malkia Strikers outside hitter Mercy Moim has opened up on how they edged Nigeria in their second match of the African Games played on Saturday evening at the Borteyman Sports Complex in Accra, Ghana.

According to Moim, the match put their resilience to the test. She pointed out that the West African country was equally tough but they first edged out their (Nigeria) best attackers.

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This is the second win in the continental showpiece, having outclassed Seychelles in their opening pool match.

“The game was good. Nigeria is a tough team but we had the fighting spirit. We ensured to get the most out of some of their attackers like number six, seven, and 13. Those were their strongest attackers. We removed them one by one. We are ready for the next opponents,” she said.

The team’s coach Japheth Munala echoed her sentiments and noted that Nigeria was a tough side, but the Kenyans were tougher. Munala explained that the main aim was to top the pool and proceed to the quarterfinals.

“By the way, the Nigerian team is a very solid side only that they couldn’t cope with our speed. We must top the pool to play the fourth-placed side in the other pool during the quarters. We can only talk about semis and finals once we clear the quarter-final matches,” he explained.

The team was missing the services of left attacker Sharon Chepchumba, something Munala noted left a void.

Despite that, he was pleased that Loise Simiyu rose to the occasion, and was crucial in the win. He also lauded Veronica Oluoch for her outstanding performance, counting on her to propel the team to excellence.

“Our volleyball now revolves around her (Oluoch) and we hope she can maintain the same spirit in the subsequent matches. Oluoch is a strong killer, who is ready to carry the team on her shoulders. We missed Chepchumba but I also think Simiyu played a good game in that position,” he averred.

The fierce ladies will face DRC Congo in the final pool match slated for Monday, 18 March.