Nyanza region representatives Plateau Queens overpowered Western region’s Brenda Girls with a resounding 5-1 victory to book their spot in this year’s Safaricom Chapa Dimba girls finals at the Jomo Kenyatta Stadium (Mamboleo) in Kisumu County yesterday.
Laikipia’s Barcelona Ladies SC representing Central region also booked their finals slot after staging a comeback from a goal down to secure a 2-1 victory over Rift Valley’s Wiyeta Girls in a fiercely contested semi final match and set up a date with Plateau Queens in the finals set to be played on Sunday, 14th April, 2024.
Plateau Queens advanced to the semi-finals after overcoming Changamwe Ladies from Mombasa with a 2-0 win, while Barcelona Ladies SC delivered a commanding performance with an astounding 18-0 triumph over Wajir Queens.
Plateau Queens Head Coach Chrispine Odindo expressed his elation, stating; “We are thrilled to have secured our place in the finals after a challenging match against the Western regional champions, Brenda Girls. They posed a physical challenge, but we managed to penetrate their defense. As former champions of season one, our aim is nothing short of claiming the trophy for the second time.”
The boys’ semi-finals are scheduled for today, Saturday, featuring Ebwali Boys from the Western region who will face off with Rift Valley’s PASC Langa, while the home team, Obunga FC, will battle Mombasa’s Bandari Youth for a spot in the final set to be played tomorrow, Sunday 14th April, 2024. The contest between Ebwali and PASC Langas kicks off at 12pm.
The winning teams in the national finals will walk away with Sh1 million in cash, with the runners-up and second runners-up taking home Sh500,000 and Sh250,000 respectively (both boys’ and girls’ teams).
In addition to the prize money, players in the winning teams, runners-up and second runners-up, will also get Neon Smartphones, the first locally assembled 4G smartphone in Kenya.
The outstanding players, including the best goalkeeper, top scorer and Most Valuable Player (boys and girls), will each receive Sh50,000.
In addition, this year’s tournament has also offered 150 TVET scholarships to Most Valuable Players (MVPs), empowering them with education and skills for life beyond football.
The national finals follow successful grassroots games (ward level, county finals, inter-county play-offs, and regional finals) conducted across the eight regions of the country.
They are Western, Nyanza, Rift Valley, Eastern, Coast, North Eastern, Nairobi, and Central regions, where 3,353 teams and over 60,300 players were featured in the tournament.