Division 1 Season Continues

The Suba Lakers went on the road for their 2nd and 3rd games in the FKF Nationwide Ladies Division 1 League.  After dropping a close one at home 1-0 to the league leaders, the Lakers headed out to Eldoret and Kakamega last weekend.

On Saturday in Eldoret they faced Kick to Life.  The field was less than ideal, but they made the best of the situation and jumped on the home team early with a goal from Irine Achieng.  A little later Dorothy Adhiambo was fouled inside the box and Irine slotted home her 2nd goal of the day.  Alicent Awuor rounded out the scoring with a screamer from outside the box.  Kick to Life was very big and fast, but the Lakers defense proved strong and Lillian Awuor did a good job between the posts.  The much younger Lakers held on for a 3-2 victory.

On Sunday, they were in Kakamega to play against Kakamega Muslim who had won their first match of the season in convincing fashion. The first half was played at a very high level.  The Lakers created many chances, but couldn't score a goal.  In the 2nd half, Kakamega scored a goal when it bounced over the goalkeeper.  That bad fortune deflated the hopes of the girls and the Lakers ended up losing 3-0.

Going on the road and getting one win out of two is a good result.  The Lakers are currently in 4th place out of 7 teams in the Western Zone of the league.  Next Saturday (Sep 1) they will be hosting Nyuki in Mbita.

1st Match

The Suba Lakers played their first game in the inaugural Kenya Division I Ladies League last Saturday, August 18th.  The new football federation has started the 2nd tier league for ladies as a springboard to the Premier League.  Our zone is made up from teams all over the Western half of the country.  The first match was at home against Oserian from Naivasha.  They come from just outside of Nairobi.

Because schools are having a three week holiday, every one of our school going girls were available for the game.  We only had one player missing from the team because she hadn't yet been approved by the Federation.

Oserian scored in the 10th minute on a goalkeeping error, but the Lakers battled back to score a goal in the 2nd half in the 60th minute.  Dorothy Adhiambo struck it into the back of the net.  A few minutes later Pheny Akoth also hit the back of the net with a header, but for some unexplained reason the referee disallowed the goal and brought the ball back for a free kick instead.  Even though the Lakers battled hard, Oserian later netted the winner in the 80th minute to take home a 2-1 win over the Suba Lakers.

Outstanding performers for the ladies included Lydia Awino playing fullback, Raysher Jedida manning the midfield and Irine Achieng on the left wing.

The Lakers will travel to Eldoret and Kakamega this weekend for two more matches.

Division I League

It is official!  The Suba Lakers have joined the Football Kenya Federation Division I Nationwide Ladies League.  We have been able to pay all of the fees required and have registered all of our players.  The league was supposed to kick off today, 11th August, but because of some problems that other teams were having, they postponed it until next weekend. 

We will be competing in the Western Region with the following teams: Oserian from Naivasha, Kick to Life from Eldoret, Kakamega Muslim, Kisumu Leeds United and Victoria from Kendu Bay.  We will play each team home and away with the top teams qualifying for the Kenya Ladies Premier League next year.  It is quite an honor to be invited to play in the 2nd highest league for ladies in the country and we are looking for individuals and corporations in Kenya that will be able to help support us financially with travel costs and other expenses.

Here are the tentative fixtures for the first leg of the league:

Aug 18th     Oserian (home)
Aug 25th     Kick to Life (Eldoret)
Aug 26th     Kakamega Muslim (Kakamega)
Sep 1st       Kisumu Leeds (home)
Sep 15th     Victoria (Kendu Bay)