Telkom Kenya win Africa Club Championships
What you need to know:
- The record Kenyan champions extended their continental dominance to 10 titles, after upstaging GRA - who had beaten Telkom 1-0 in the final last yer in Accra.
- The Ghanaians had also beaten Telkom by a solitary goal in their last match of the round robin format on Thursday.
Telkom Kenya on Saturday reclaimed the Africa Hockey Club Championships title with a hard-fought 2-0 win over champions Ghana Revenue Authority in Abuja, Nigeria.
The record Kenyan champions extended their continental dominance to 10 titles, after upstaging GRA - who had beaten Telkom 1-0 in the final last yer in Accra. The Ghanaians had also beaten Telkom by a solitary goal in their last match of the round robin format on Thursday.
Jackline Mwangi struck the opener in the first quarter before Audrey Omaido added the second in the second quarter to give Jos Openda's Telkom the breathing space they needed. The Kenyan giants retreated to defending their two-goal margin in the last 30 minutes of the encounter.
“Last year, the Cup left Kenya, but now it is back, so its like the Cup never left. The players played according to instructions, and as I said, we’d rather lose in the preliminary round than the final,” said Openda, who has won six African titles with Telkom.
“Telkom won because they took their chances, something my team did not. The difference between the two teams. GRA did not take their chances and they deservedly have the trophy now,” said GRA coach Boakyu Yaibom.
The men’s final between 21-time champions El-Sharkia and Ghana Revenue Authority was still on at press time.
Kenya’s other representatives USIU Spartans will carry more lessons from the tournament after finishing fourth. The debutants fell to Ghana Police in the third place playoff 2-0 with the Ghanaians bagging Bronze.
Umaru Nafiosatu scored both goals, adding her tally to seven goals to top the scorers chart.
“The tournament has indeed brought the best out of the girls and the lessons learnt will carry them to the national league,” said USIU Spartans team manager John Kabuu.
Eastern Company from Egypt beat Exchequers of Ghana to win the bronze medal in the men’s clash.
Delta Queens beat Kada Queens 3-2 in the fifth and sixth place playoff, while Niger Flickers saw off Kada Stars 3-2 to finish fifth in the men’s playoff.
