Kenya U20 coach appeals to FKF ahead of World Cup qualifying date with Tanzania
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Reading Time: 2min | Mon. 29.09.25. | 21:34
The win assured Kenya of a February 2026 meeting with bitter rivals Tanzania, who themselves overwhelmed Angola 7-0 on aggregate
Kenya women’s U20 national team head coach Jackline Juma has asked Football Kenya Federation (FKF) to organise international friendlies for her side as they prepare for the third round of the 2026 FIFA U20 World Cup qualifiers early next year.
Juma on Sunday, 28 September, led her Rising Starlets to a dominant 4-0 victory over Ethiopia, which meant Kenya breezed past its first qualification hurdle 5-1 on aggregate.
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The win assured Kenya of a February 2026 meeting with bitter rivals Tanzania, who themselves overwhelmed Angola 7-0 on aggregate.
Asked about her ideal preparations for the mouth-watering clash to be played over two legs (home and away), Juma pointed to the need for more test matches to gauge their levels in the coming months.
“Going forward, we want to start our preparations early,” Juma said. “If possible, once we get international friendlies, we will combine with local teams so that we can get an overview of clearly where we are, and where we want to go.”
Alluding to the team’s preparations for the ties against Ethiopia, Juma noted that there were plans for such international tests, but “there was limited time” to make them happen.
Those constraints instead saw the team play a number of friendlies with local sides, including Kibera Soccer Women, Glorions U16 Boys and Ulinzi Starlets, which, as per Juma, gave her good insights about her team.
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Responding to the upcoming battle against Tanzania, skipper Fasila Adhiambo instead had a simple call.
“As you have seen, we played well against Ethiopia,” she said. “If FKF keeps supporting us, I am sure we will not let the nation down. Support is all we need to keep making everyone proud.”
At the same time, Juma played down any form of friendly banter getting in the way of the tie with their East African neighbours, saying: “For us, it is one step at a time. We do not want to focus on the noisemaking. Ninety minutes will be the decider.”
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