Kenya’s U-15 national teams endured contrasting fortunes at the 2026 CAF African Schools Football Championship CECAFA Zonal Qualifiers in Kigali, Rwanda, with the girls powering into the semi-finals while the boys bowed out at the group stage.
The regional tournament, which features U-15 boys’ and girls’ teams, kicked off on Thursday, 3 September and is scheduled to conclude on Saturday, 5 September. The respective zonal winners will earn the right to represent the CECAFA region at the continental championship. Starlets cruise into last fourThe Emerging Starlets opened their campaign with a goalless draw against Tanzania, but quickly found their scoring boots when the competition resumed with a demanding double-header on Friday.
They first dismantled South Sudan 7-0, registering their first victory of the tournament in emphatic fashion.Abigael Cheruto was the star of the show, helping herself to four goals as Kenya ran riot. Cindy Oyoko, Fridah Parloma and Christine Nyawira were also on target, with each player finding the back of the net once.The emphatic victory gave Kenya the momentum they needed heading into their second fixture of the day, where they faced Somalia.
There was no let-up from the young Kenyans as they produced another commanding performance, thumping Somalia 8-0 to complete a remarkable turnaround after their opening-day stalemate.
The two victories, coupled with the earlier draw against Tanzania, took Kenya to seven points and ensured they finished at the summit of their group.The results also underlined the attacking quality within Mary Adhiambo’s side, who entered the tournament as Kenya’s representatives in the girls’ U-15 competition. Kenya will now turn their attention to the knockout stage, where they are set to face hosts Rwanda in the semi-final as they seek to book a place in the final and move one step closer to securing the regional ticket.Boys suffer early eliminationThe story was, however, markedly different for the boys’ team.
The Emerging Stars saw their hopes of progressing to the knockout stage extinguished after suffering a 2-1 defeat to Rwanda in their final group fixture on Friday, 4 September at Kigali Pele Stadium.
The defeat left Kenya with only one point from their three matches, bringing a disappointing end to their campaign after failing to register a victory.Kenya had endured a difficult start to the tournament on Thursday, suffering a heavy 4-0 defeat in their opening fixture before responding with a goalless draw against Sudan.The point against Sudan offered a glimmer of hope, but the boys needed a positive result against Rwanda to keep their qualification hopes alive.
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Instead, the hosts edged them 2-1, leaving the Kenyan youngsters at the bottom end of the standings and ending their bid for a semi-final berth.Patrick Nyale’s boys had been drawn in Group A alongside hosts Rwanda, Sudan and Tanzania, while Uganda, Somalia, South Sudan and Burundi made up Group B.The boys’ campaign therefore ends with one draw and two defeats, including the 4-0 loss to Tanzania and Friday’s narrow defeat against Rwanda.