Head coach Mildred Cheche expressed pride in the Junior Starlets’ improvement, despite their 2-0 loss to England in their opening Group C match at the Under-17 World Cup, held at CFC Stadium in Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic. In a post-match interview, Cheche highlighted the team’s resilience, emphasizing that they were not in the tournament just to make up the numbers.
“I can say that the team really did well considering that England have participated in this tournament several times. I liked the good defensive organization and the power to run behind the ball,” said Cheche. “We have a big platform to explore. Our aim now is to win the two remaining matches so that we achieve our goal of reaching the semifinal stage.”
Kenya conceded a penalty in the 29th minute, scored by Lola Sangita Brown, and a late goal in the 87th minute by Lauryn Ida Belle Thompson, marking a challenging start to the tournament. Despite the setback, forward Marion Serenge echoed her coach’s sentiments, acknowledging the tough match but remaining confident in the team’s abilities.
“It was a tough match, but we tried our best. We’ll work on fixing our weaknesses ahead of the next game. We urge our fans to keep supporting us. We’ll keep working hard in the upcoming matches,” said Serenge.
Kenya’s next fixture is against North Korea on Sunday at 11 p.m., followed by a match against Mexico on October 24. North Korea currently leads Group C after a 4-1 victory over Mexico.
Reflecting on the match against England, Kenya’s high-press strategy and wide-area attacks showed promise, but defensive vulnerabilities were exposed at key moments. Looking ahead, Cheche will need to find a better balance between defense and attack.
Against Korea DPR, known for disciplined defense and structured counterattacks, Kenya will need to be more clinical in front of goal and tighten their defense to avoid another defeat. The top two teams from each group will advance to the quarterfinals, while the bottom two will exit the tournament.
