SCHOOLS: Butere Girls, Wiyeta, Madira and Lwak Girls chase semifinal slots

Butere Girls' Liaka Nancy and Kombani Girls' Shedrack Salma during the National secondary school term two ball games at Kakamega high school on August 9. [Benjamin Sakwa,Standard]

All eyes will be on girls' football final pool matches on Wednesday as the race to qualify for the Kenya Secondary School Sports Association (KSSSA) national games semifinals heats up in Kakamega.

Defending champions Wiyeta Girls High School, Western champions Butere Girls, debutants St Mary's Lwak Girls High School, and Nairobi representatives Dagoretti Mixed must win their final pool matches to be sure of making it to the semifinals.

In Group A, Butere Girls, who began their campaign with a 1-1 draw against Dagoretti on Tuesday, thrashed Kombani 5-0 to move top of the pool with four points and five goals.

The Kakamega County runner-up are followed by Dagoretti, who narrowly saw off Njambini 2-1, to sit second with four points and a one-goal difference. Njambini are third with three points after their opening 3-1 win over Kombani.

Speaking after picking their first win, Butere Girls coach Howard Shikanga said they are looking forward to completing the job today as they target to reach the last four.

Shikanga added that he was impressed with how the girls responded after their disappointing 1-1 draw during their opening match.

"We are very confident of pulling through to the semifinals. Our goal remains one in the overall tournament; to qualify for the East Africa games, which we can accomplish. All we need to do is qualify for the final," said Shikanga.

"To get four points is not a mean feat and I appreciate my girls for working hard. Now we have created and formed winning formulae which we have to maintain."

In Group B, it is the same story as defending national champions Wiyeta from Rift Valley battle for the semifinal slots alongside Madira Girls and Lwak Girls.

Madira sit top of the table with four points and a goal difference of seven goals followed by Wiyeta, who have four points and one goal difference. Madira thrashed Mbitini 7-0 on Tuesday before drawing 1-1 with Wiyeta.

On the other hand, Lwak Girls have three points after seeing off Mbitini 4-1 yesterday. The Siaya County champions had lost 2-1 to Wiyeta.

Lwak must beat Madira to qualify for the semis while Wiyeta also has to defeat Mbitini. On the other hand, Butere Girls have to complete the job against Njambini while Dagoretti hopes to see off Kombani.