Three Kenyan-based players have been named in the South Sudan squad that will play Kenya in an international friendly game on September 12 in Nairobi.
Sudan will travel to Kenya to play the Stars; this will come after the Stars’ friendly game against Qatar in Doha this Thursday. South Sudan, on the other hand, will first play Mali in Bamako on September 8 before flying to Nairobi.
The African Cup of Nations qualifier against Mali is more of a formality for South Sudan, as they sit bottom in the group and are already out of contention. Mali who top the group have already secured a ticket to the Ivory Coast, and Gambia looks set to get the second ticket if they do not lose to Congo by at least five goals.
For the friendly game, Africa’s newest nation has called up three players based in Kenya to their squad. The three are the Kenya Police FC pair of Rashid Toha, a defender, and striker Tito Okello, who recently joined the law enforcers from Iran. Completing the list is Paul Jawa, an attacking midfielder attached to National Super League side Rainbow FC.
Jawa has been a key player for the U20 for the last year, and earlier this year he was part of the South Sudan U20 team at the U20 AFCON in Egypt.
Toha and Okello, on the other hand, are mainstays in the senior team, and Toha has several times captained the team.
“The new signings, Rashid Toha and Tito Okello, have also earned a call-up to the Southern Sudan National Team.” Congratulations guys,” police posted on their Facebook page.
