Kenya Police Bullets narrowly miss out on Champions League slot
Kenya Police Bullets striker Rebbeca Okwaro (left) dribbles past an opponent from Yei Joints of South Sudan during a Caf Women's Champions League Cecafa qualifiers at Abebe Bikila Stadium in Addis Ababa.
What you need to know:
- Bullets, who were making their debut in the tournament, knocked out 2022 champions Simba Queens of Tanzania 2-1 in the semis.
- Bullets finished second in group "A" with four points, having won 1-0 over Rayon, drew 0-0 with Yei, and lost 2-1 to CBE in their final group match.
The Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) will represent the Cecafa region in the Caf Women’s Champions League.
The Ethiopian club achieved this feat after a 1-0 victory over Kenya Police Bullets during the Cecafa Region qualifiers final at the Abebe Bikila Stadium in Addis Ababa on Thursday.
Earlier, 2022 champions Simba Queens from Tanzania lost 2-0 to Kamwepe Muslim from Uganda in the third-place playoff.
During the closely contested final, Bullets' goalkeeper Annette Kundu was under constant pressure as she faced relentless attempts from CBE’s strikers.
The turning point of the match arrived in the 78th minute when striker Senaf Waquma finished off a well-executed move.
The CBE attackers navigated through the Bullets’ defence skillfully, before sliding past Kundu.
Waquma won the Golden Boot with six goals from five matches.
The first substitution for Bullets came in the 63rd minute when coach Beldine Odemba rested striker Lucy Kwekwe, opting to bring in Mary Nthambi in the hopes of revitalising their attack
Unfortunately, the changes made little effect and the team struggled to find the momentum needed to break down the CBE defence.
This win is particularly sweet for CBE after losing the 2021 and 2023 finals.
In 2021, they lost 2-1 to the Vihiga Queens of Kenya and then went down 5-4 on penalties to Jeshi La Kujenga Taifa (JKT) Queens of Tanzania in 2023.
Bullets, who were making their debut in the tournament, knocked out 2022 champions Simba Queens of Tanzania 2-1 in the semis.
Bullets finished second in group "A" with four points, having won 1-0 over Rayon, drew 0-0 with Yei, and lost 2-1 to CBE in their final group match.
