St. Joseph Starlets Murang’a and Laikipia Youth Soccer Academy (LYSA) have been crowned champions of the fifth edition of the Safaricom Chapa Dimba Central Region.
St. Joseph Starlets beat Barcelona Rising Starlets 5-1 to claim the girls’ title, ending a five-season wait for the regional crown and bringing Barcelona’s dominance in the competition to an end. Patience Waithera opened the scoring in the ninth minute before Iffy Moraa doubled St. Joseph’s lead from the penalty spot after Fiona Mmboga was penalised for a foul inside the box, giving the Murang’a side a 2-0 lead at the break.
St. Joseph Starlets picked up where they left off after the restart, with Waithera turning on the style to score three more goals and complete a remarkable four-goal haul. Nevian Anyoso pulled one back for Barcelona Rising Starlets, but the Murang’a side remained in control to seal a commanding 5-1 victory.
“First, let me thank God for this win. It wasn’t easy. It has always been our wish to win the regional title and take my team to the nationals, and today we have made it. Last season, we lost to Barcelona 5-0, and today we came for revenge. We had studied our opponents and made sure we kept possession and controlled the game. I am happy with what my girls have done. Now we go back to prepare for the nationals. Our aim is to lift the national trophy,” said Geofrey Kitemi, Head Coach of St. Joseph Starlets Murang’a.
In the boys’ category, LYSA, under the stewardship of Farouque Djeffah, defeated MASFO Academy 1-0 to claim their third regional title. LYSA’s decisive goal came from Patrick Ngaira, who calmly converted a penalty in the nineteenth minute after Dokhor Kiir was penalised for a foul inside the box.
MASFO pushed for an equaliser but were unable to find a breakthrough. Kelvin Lemein came close when his free kick struck the crossbar, while Samwel Parmuat squandered a one-on-one opportunity with the goalkeeper as LYSA held on to secure victory.
“It was really a tough game, not as we had anticipated, but we are happy to defend our title. Most of my players were a bit fatigued, but we remained determined, knowing the importance of this tournament and the opportunity to get to the nationals. Once again, I want to thank Safaricom for this great tournament, giving our young players an opportunity to showcase their talents. I am sure some of my players will be among the All-Star teams that will be going to Sweden for the Gothia Cup next year,” said Farouque Djeffah.
Both St. Joseph Starlets Murang’a and LYSA pocketed Ksh. 250,000 each, among other prizes, including smartphones and airtime. The two champions will represent the Central Region at the national finals scheduled for early next year. Runners-up Barcelona Rising Starlets and MASFO each took home Ksh. 150,000 alongside other prizes.
The Best Goalkeeper awards went to Gladys Wanjoro of Barcelona Rising Starlets and Stephen Kamau of LYSA, while the Top Scorer awards were claimed by Patience Waithera of St. Joseph Starlets and Samson Epuu of LYSA.
The Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards went to Fatuma Binsuda of St. Joseph Starlets and Edison Bwire of LYSA, with each taking home Ksh. 30,000. The MVPs also received fully funded tertiary education scholarships under the Safaricom Citizens of the Future Programme.
St. Joseph Starlets and LYSA now join Vihiga Cranes and Lugari Progressive from the Western Region, who have already booked their places in the national finals.
Today’s finals were preceded by an exhibition match between Safaricom staff and Kirinyaga journalists, with the Kirinyaga-based journalists running out 4-0 winners and taking home Ksh. 40,000.
With the action done and dusted in the Central Region, the Safaricom Chapa Dimba regional finals now head to the Nyanza Region, with Homa Bay County set to host the next leg at Raila Odinga Stadium on Saturday, 12 September, and Sunday, 13 September.
