Tag Archives: Harambee

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS QUALIFIER | Oliech gives the Stars a glimmer of hope

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Dennis Oliech scored a wonder goal 2 minutes into injury time to restore Kenya’s slim chances of qualifying for the Africa Cup of nations. The stars  went into the match knowing that only a win would ensure they remain in the race for the 2012 tournament.  The stars dominated early possession but the Western African side-Guinea Bissau, who beat them in the first leg by a solitary goal, defended well to deny the stars an early goal.

Coach Zedekiah Otieno made a double attacking substitution bringing in the exciting striker Stephen Waruru and AFC Leopards forward Mike Barasa. The substitution made an immediate impact as Barasa netted in the opener in the 55th minute to send the home fans into a frenzy. The stars continued to dominate the match and looked set for a slim victory until a defensive mistake allowed the visitors to restore parity within nine minutes of normal time left. The goal silenced the home fans, some leaving the stadium in disappointment.  Auxere striker, Dennis Oliech, however, had other ideas! He salvaged the home side by delivering a screamer following  poor clearance by the visitors from a corner kick, sending the home fans into wild cheers. httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGHZu0lbTiY

Despite the result, Kenya’s chances of qualification remain slim. The only chance they have of qualifying is hoping Uganda loses to Angola by a huge margin and hope Guinea beats Angola. Statistically,  it is  possible for the stars to progress. This means beating Uganda on their home-soil  by more than 6 goals,  to top the group on goal difference.

References
Kenya 2-1 Guinea Bissau: Denise Oliech’s last gasp screamer saves Harambee Stars Goal.com September 3, 2011

Kenya must thrash Guinea, Uganda then wait for ‘Lady luck’ Kenya Premier League August 30, 2011

2014 WORLD CUP DRAW | Harambee Stars vs. Seychelles

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When the draw for the 2014 world cup qualifiers was conducted on the 30th of July 2011, the Kenya national soccer team was among a group of 24 lowly ranked teams in the continent set to face it out before joining a group stages for a chance to taste glory in Brazil. The stars ranked 130th in the latest FIFA rankings are set to square it out with the tiny Indian ocean island of Seychelles’ known better for its tourism than for its football prowess. The stars should have an easy task advancing into the group stages if Seychelles’’ current placing in the rankings 197 is anything to go by. However in football anything is bound to happen and for this reason the stakeholders should ensure the team prepares enough in time for the 11th of November clash away before a return fixture in Nairobi four days later.

If the stars cross the Seychelles hurdle they will join Nigeria, Malawi and the winner of the tie between Namibia and Djibouti in group F to fight it out for first place. The winner of the group will join nine other group winners in five two legged ties with the winners representing Africa in the 2014 FIFA world cup. Nigeria and Malawi who are ranked higher than Kenya pose the biggest threat at that stage. In the recent past Nigeria has proven to be our perennial rival when it comes to world cup qualification each time the super eagles flying above our stars. The latest being the 3-2 defeat at the hands of the West Africans in Nairobi during the qualifications for the 2010 world cup. There are lots of positives that the current national team can build on from that encounter and possibly take us all the way to Rio bearing in mind the fact that we were leading only for our defensive frailties to let us down.

The stars have a good chance of making it through to face off with the big boys of African football for a chance to play in Brazil .However that will only happen if preparations start early.

References:
Super eagles in Harambee Stars’ way, Daily Nation, 2nd August2011
Kenya 2 Nigeria 3: match report, The Telegraph, 14th Nov 2009
Road to Brazil, standardmedia, 2nd August 2011