UP NEXT BURUNDI: Sleek Harambee Starlets look to pounce in second match

CECAFA SENIOR WOMEN CHAMPIONSHIP Kenya Harambee Starlets midfielder Caroline Anyango(L) and Jean Sseninde of Uganda Crested Cranes battle for ball Possession during their Cecafa Senior Women Championship in Jinja, Uganda on Sunday 11/09/16.PHOTO.BONIFACE OKENDO

Kenya’s Harambee Starlets face Burundi today in their second match of the Cecafa women’s tournament hoping to carry their winning ways forward, having beaten hosts Crested Cranes of Uganda 4-0 on day one.

After their resounding win at the Technical Centre Njeru in Jinja on Sunday, Harambee Starlets assistant coach Mary Adhiambo says their focus is on the Burundi encounter.

“Although it was not an easy win, we played well in the first match. It was a different Ugandan side we played against and beat in Kisumu in July,” Adhiambo said.

“They have improved and one could see that from the way they were pressing and tackling, especially in the first half. But we were able to contain them and pick the most important points of the tournament,” she said.

It was the second time Kenya were beating the Ugandans by the same 4-0 margin, but Adhiambo refused to be carried away ahead of the Burundi game.

Burundi won their first match with a 10-1 whitewash of Zanzibar and will be buoyed by that performance ahead of facing the Afcon for women-bound Kenya.

“It won’t be any easier for us considering that Burundi picked a 10-1 win over Zanzibar in their first match. We are going to this match with caution and hoping to keep a clean sheet. Our aim is to come out of the group stages first,” she told Feverpitch after their clash with Uganda.

Esse Akida hit a double for Kenya while Mary Kinuthia and Vivian Corazon scored a goal apiece as Harambee Starlets underlined their title credentials.

Uganda play Zanzibar in the other Group A clash.

Crested Cranes head coach Majida Nantanda said her team had improved and she would focus on the Zanzibar game hoping to bounce back to grab one of the top two slots to qualify for the semi-finals.