Why Kenya find it hard to toss out rising Cameroon

Junior Malkia Strikers' Emmaculate Misiko serves ball against Cameroon during Women's U20 Africa Nations Volleyball Championship at the Kasarani Gymnasium on Thursday, August 30, 2018. [Jonah Onyango, Standard]

With no doubt, Kenya’s dominance in the women’s volleyball on the continent is slowly but steadily getting interrupted by a fast-improving Cameroon.

The West Africans are becoming a force to reckon with in Africa if their recent performances against both senior and junior Malkia Strikers is anything to go by.

Cameroon’s meteoric rise in the recent few years have seen them leapfrog Malkia Strikers at the top of the continental rankings.

While Kenyans’ game level seems to have stagnated, the Cameroonians are on an upward trajectory across all categories as they have denied their newfound East Africans rivals either qualification tickets or titles in the recent past.

Prison's Coach David Lung'aho gives instructions [Courtesy]

This was evidenced on Thursday at Kasarani Gymnasium when Cameroon’s junior team made Kenya look so ordinary before knocking them out of the 2018 Women’s Volleyball Under-20 African Nations Championship with a 3-1 victory.

Though there was some improvement in terms of performance from their previous day’s shocking 3-1 defeat to Nigeria, poor service, attack and back court defence cost the Paul Gitau’s girls the glory.

But due to poor preparation, this was bound to happen. Unlike Cameroon who were in a residential camp for more than a month, the hosts trained together for less than two weeks with their key players joining them a few days to the tournament after representing their respective schools in the FEASSA Games in Kigali, Rwanda.

It was a repeat of the 2017 scenario in Yaoundé where the hosts’ senior team outclassed and in the process dethroned the nine-time African champions Malkia Strikers.

The fast-rising Cameroon thrashed Kenya by straight sets to claim their first ever continental title. However, both teams qualified for next month’s (September 29-October 20) World Championship in Japan.

This came barely a year after Cameroon had clinched the sole ticket to the 2016 Rio Olympics Games in Brazil after upsetting Egypt 3-2. Egypt had beaten Kenya in African Olympics Qualifiers semifinals by the same margin.

Cameroon’s meteoric rise has not only left Kenya Volleyball Federation Technical Director David Lung’aho a worried man but also concerned with Kenya’s technical skills, development and facilities.

“Yes, we are naturally talented, but the game has evolved. We must go back to the drawing board and change our approach and training tactics because the game has become scientific. Unlike us, the Cameroon government has invested in the game and that’s why their teams are performing well,” Lung’aho said.

“How many internationally approved gymnasiums do we have in Kenya at the moment? What about the feeder programmes?”

The African Volleyball Confederation president Amr Elwani weighed into the debate and said: “I want to believe every nation has its period. Egypt, Tunisia and Kenya had their time and conquered. I think it is time for Cameroon to shine and that shows the game is competitive.