Kisii School will renew their rivalry with St. Mary’s School Yala, in rugby 15s as the Brookside National Secondary Schools Term One Games enter the semi-finals on Friday.
In the other semi-final, favourites Upper Hill School will battle it out with former champions Kakamega High School at Jomo Kenyatta Stadium. Kisii underlined their credentials as favourites in the tournament after winning all their preliminary games.
They concluded their campaign with a hard-fought 6-3 win over Rift Valley’s Menengai High on Thursday, while Yala thrashed Kwale High 39-10 to progress to the semi-finals. Kisii coach Edwin Morara said, “Expect a tough match. I hope the boys will turn up for the game. Having lost twice to Yala at the regionals, we want to avenge the losses.”
Kakamega High thrashed Mang’u High 59-3 while Upper Hill sent former East Africa and national champions All Saints, Embu home after humbling them 33-19.
Kakamega coach Amos Wamanga said the Babarians are back after leading his side to record the biggest win in the Brookside Games at Mamboleo Stadium. Wamanga, who played with four Grade 10 students, said they are impressed with the overall growth of the team.
“Kakamega is back! We have been rebuilding over the years, and now we are starting to see the fruits of the hard work. Despite reaching this stage in different circumstances, the boys have shown mental stability to compete with the best, and we aim higher,” he added.
In the girls’ category, national 7s champions Kinale will be up against Mbagathi as St. Joseph’s Girls, Kitale, face off with Mwira. In girls’ hockey, it will be a battle of the usual suspects with Nyanza champions Ng’iya renewing its rivalry with former champions Nyamira in Friday’s semi-final at Kisumu Day.
Ng’iya will hope to continue with their dominance over Nyamira, having beaten them at Siaya County and Nyanza region games for the last two years. Ng’iya, coached by Oduor Nyadida, are the only team that has won all three games.
They concluded their group stage games with an emphatic 3-0 win over M-Pesa Foundation Academy while Nyamira defeated St. Charles Lwanga 3-0 to advance to the last four. Nyamira Girls’ coach Denis Kigai promised to turn the tables on Ng’iya.
“We lost against them by small margins. We have corrected the errors, and I’m confident we shall qualify for the finals,” said Kigai. His Ng’iya counterpart, Oduor Nyadida, is confident his team will continue with their dominance over Nyamira and play in the finals.
“We have worked on our striking. The girls are sharper, and we expect them to beat Nyamira again.” Federation of East Africa Schools Sports Association (FEASSA) St. Joseph’s Girls, Kitale, will battle it out with AIC Nyayo in another semi-final.
A new winner will be crowned following the elimination of defending champions Tigoi Girls in the preliminary stage. St. Joseph’s Girls, coached by John Lusaka, completed their group stage game with an emphatic 3-1 win over last year’s winners Tigoi to eliminate them.
Coach Lusaka on Thursday vowed to beat AIC Nyayo and progress to the final. “I respect Nyayo, but we must bring them down. We eliminated our neighbours and friends Tigoi, but that’s part of the game,” said Lusaka.
