Safaricom Chapa Dimba heads to Kirinyaga County this weekend for central regional finals with eight teams (four boys and four girls’ teams) set for the regional crown showdown at Wang’uru Stadium.
The eight teams include the two-time regional champions Barcelona Ladies FC from Laikipia, Kartzville FC from Kirinyaga, St. Joseph Sec from Murang’a, and Kiwanja Queens from Kiambu in the girls’ category. The boys’ category will feature Karatina Homeboyz from Nyeri, Lysa FC from Laikipia, Kiaga Sec from Kirinyaga, and M-PESA Foundation from Kiambu.
Kicking off the action on Saturday with the first semi-final will be the defending champions Barcelona Ladies FC against the host giants Kartzville FC from Kirinyaga. The second match will see Nyeri’s Karatina Homeboyz take on Lysa FC from Laikipia before Kiwanja Queens of Kiambu battle it out with St. Joseph Sec from Murang’a in the third match of the day.
Coach James Mutahi will lead his side Kiaga Secondary as they welcome M-PESA Foundation Academy from Kiambu to close the day.
“As we prepare to play this weekend, our goal is to win all of our matches and defend our regional title for the third consecutive time. We aim to get an opportunity to represent our region in the nationals since our ambitions were halted during the last edition due to the pandemic. The team is in good form as we have been training daily and participating in a few local competitions that I believe have helped strengthen my girls. We ask our fans to come out in large numbers and support us,”
said Emman Wafula Gullit, head coach of Barcelona Ladies FC.
The weekend showdown marks the final regional finals of the Safaricom Chapa Dimba fourth edition, which officially kicked off in August last year in Western Kenya.
The Central region featured a total of 325 teams from six counties, namely Kiambu, Kirinyaga, Murang’a, Laikipia, and Nyeri, with 288 boys’ teams and 37 girls’ teams participating at the grassroots level.
The matches will be preceded by players and coach clinics which will involve training on various aspects of the football tournament including the use of GPS Sports Vests, which Safaricom has introduced to aid in the scouting of players by collecting data and building on the player’s profiles during the matches using metrics that are globally recognized and accepted.
The winners from each semi-final group will vie for victory in the finals slated for Sunday, where each winning team (boys and girls) will take home KES. 250,000 and book a slot to represent the region at the national finals set for mid-next month in Kisumu. The runners-up teams will take home KES. 150,000 each. The Best Goalkeeper, Top Scorer, and Most Valuable (boys and girls) will each receive KES. 30,000. In addition to the prize money each player, both winners and runners-up will also get Neon Smartphones, the first locally assembled 4G smartphone in Kenya.
Safaricom Chapa Dimba aims to provide a structured platform for scouts and coaches to tap into new talent and build feeder systems for the Kenyan football leagues across the country while also training a total of 250 coaches. The tournament targets footballers aged between 16 and 20 years old.
Saturday’s schedule
Semifinal 1
Barcelona fc (Laikipia) Vs Kartzville fc (Kirinyaga) – Girls
Semifinal 2
St Joseph sec (Murang’a) Vs Kiwanja Queens (Kiambu) – Boys
Semifinal 3
Karatina Homeboyz (Nyeri) Vs Lysa fc (Laikipia)
Semifinal 4
Kiaga Sec (Kirinyaga) Vs M-PESA Foundation Academy (Kiambu).
Sunday’s schedule
