NCPB eyeing a three-peat in East and Central African handball championship

National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) men's handball team is gearing up for this year's East and Central African Handball Federation (ECAHF) championship with a third consecutive title in mind. 

The event scheduled from Saturday 14 to Monday 23 December in Rwanda will see teams in the region lock horns in search of the title that the Kenyan side won in 2022 in Zanzibar and last year when the showpiece was hosted in Nairobi. 

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NCPB skipper Timothy Kirimi has declared the side ready for battle, confirming that they would depart the country 'later this week' for the 10-day competition that brings together the best in the region. 

"We are grateful to the team management and the company for their support. We leave later in the week and the team is prepared well, " Kirimi said.

"Part of our preparations have been the Kenyan league matches where our technical bench has had the opportunity to try out different systems.

This has helped us gauge ourselves and exposed areas that needed firming up ahead of this competition and our training has been focused on these."

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Key for the side is making their defense tight, to give themselves a chance upfront and the captain believes his side has achieved this in training and what remains is execution. 

"We have beefed up our defense and we trust these changes will help us win. We also have a game plan that focuses on each player's abilities," he added.

The captain is well aware of the formidable opposition his charges, who missed the 2019 event won by Rwanda Police, are set to face in terms of quality.

He singles out host and Ugandan clubs as their biggest threats. He, however, believes they can surmount the pressure to retain their title. 

"We are chasing a three-peat which is no easy task given the quality of teams we expect to be up against. We have a target on our backs given our achievements in the competition.

We are, however, ready and calling on all Kenyans to rally behind the team," he concluded.