For the first time in history…
In the Primary School Ball-games, the Lake Region boys
have really dominated the country in football, especially in recent years. They have won the championship 6 times in the
past 10 years. The girls from Lake
Region have always been equally as talented, yet they had never won the
championship before this year. The
reasons are not clear, but maybe it was due to tribal differences on the
team (Kisii and Luo tribes), or a lack of good discipline or poor
coaching. For the Primary School
Ball-games, the coaches select the best players from the different counties
within their region. They train them for
one week before participating in the National Tournament which lasts for 3
days. It is not easy to carry out a
proper/fair selection of the best players from the entire region and then teach
them how to play together as a team in such a short amount of time.
In recent years, Suba Laker coach Joe Peterson has been
assisting Head Coach Job Ochoki in training and coaching the girls for the
National Ball-games. In 2011 and 2012
they helped lead the team to the National Finals, but lost both of those
matches. Last year, 2013, they reached the
semifinals, but were eliminated at that point.
Many felt that 2014 could be the year the girls finally
win it all. Most of the girls from last
year had returned and were now in their final year of primary school (8th
Grade). Also, the Lake Region was the
host for the National Ball-games. With
experienced players and crowd support, the team was very optimistic.
Of the 18 players on the team, 10 hailed from Homa Bay
County, including 6 Suba Lakers. This
was the 4th time Lavenda Acheing had reached Nationals, 3rd
time for Winny Akinyi, 2nd time for Lillian Awuor, and the first
time for Eunice Anyango, Lencer Adoyo and June Brenda. This disciplined and experienced group of
players was the backbone of the Lake Region team. They quickly made friends with the other
girls from different places and different tribes. Lavenda was elected the team leader and Winny
the team pastor, leading the team in prayers before and after every training
session. They demonstrated to the other
girls the importance of training hard and good preparation. Many of the other girls acted a bit lazy and
complained of sickness or injury to avoid practice, but the Suba Laker Girls
came to the field ready to train hard and do whatever the coach asked of
them. Because of that commitment and
hard work, 5 of the 6 earned their way in the starting lineup by the time the
tournament began.
In our first match with perennial power Western Region,
we played on a sloppy, rain-soaked field that led to many defensive
blunders. Lake Region scored 2 early
goals to go up 2-0, but Western answered with 2 of their own later in the 1st
half. Just before halftime the girls
managed 1 more to go into the break with a morale booster. The girls added 3 more in the 2nd
half for a convincing 6-2 victory over the team that eliminated them the
previous year in the semifinals. With
such a large goal differential in the first match, we were able to play many of
our substitutes in the 2nd match against Aberdares Region, and still
managed to win 3-0 and finish on top of the group.
In the semifinals we faced a big and strong Nakuru Region
team. We scored half-way through the
opening half and held on for a 1-0 victory. That win qualified us for the Finals.
On the championship day, our girls exuded much confidence with the home fans surrounding the field and supporting them enthusiastically. From the opening kick of the Finals against defending champs Nairobi Metropolitan, the Lake Region girls controlled the ball possession and displayed great teamwork. Their good play resulted in 4 great chances to score in the opening half, but each time they created a chance, a very talented and aggressive Goalkeeper from Nairobi Metropolitan thwarted their bid. As the 2nd half played out, Nairobi resorted to kicking balls out and feigning injuries to waste time. Regulation time ended with a scoreless draw and the game went for 20 minutes of extra time. As the players from both teams got worn down physically, scoring chances opened up, but the two goalkeepers proved up to the challenge. The match ended without a goal, so it would be up to post-match penalty kicks to determine the National Champion.
On the championship day, our girls exuded much confidence with the home fans surrounding the field and supporting them enthusiastically. From the opening kick of the Finals against defending champs Nairobi Metropolitan, the Lake Region girls controlled the ball possession and displayed great teamwork. Their good play resulted in 4 great chances to score in the opening half, but each time they created a chance, a very talented and aggressive Goalkeeper from Nairobi Metropolitan thwarted their bid. As the 2nd half played out, Nairobi resorted to kicking balls out and feigning injuries to waste time. Regulation time ended with a scoreless draw and the game went for 20 minutes of extra time. As the players from both teams got worn down physically, scoring chances opened up, but the two goalkeepers proved up to the challenge. The match ended without a goal, so it would be up to post-match penalty kicks to determine the National Champion.
The Lake Region Goalkeeper, Lillian Awuor, is an
excellent keeper in every way, but is especially skilled against penalty kicks. During the Primary School Ball-games over the
past month, Lillian has won all 17 games her team has played. Three of those games were Finals that came
down to post-match penalty kicks. Only 3
people in those games were able to get the ball past her. In the County Finals, she saved every penalty
kick that was shot. She was determined
to win the National Trophy, but Nairobi’s keeper was a very formidable
opponent.
Asher Atieno and Winny Akinyi scored their penalties for
the Lake Region team, but the pivotal moment was when Goalkeeper Lillian Awuor
scored against her counterpart. It gave
her the psychological edge needed and helped our girls have faith that they
would take the day. Lillian saved the 5th
and final kick to preserve a 3-2 win for the Lake Region as the fans stormed
the field jumping, screaming and dancing.
It was a magical moment for all of Lake Region to stake their claim as the National Champions in the Primary School Ball-games for both the girls and the boys!
Check out this video of the celebration:
It was a magical moment for all of Lake Region to stake their claim as the National Champions in the Primary School Ball-games for both the girls and the boys!
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