Daggers had been drawn in the Sakaja Super Cup Nairobi East regional finals.
The atmosphere electrifying, the stadium stands packed to the brim and the tempo on fever pitch, Githurai All Stars snatched a hard-fought victory over a fluid Shauri Moyo United treating fans who had filled Dandora stadium to a football masterclass and setting up a juicy grand finale set to be played on Friday December 20th,2024 at the Dandora stadium.
From box to box, right from the on set, goal after goal on both sides was the order of the day as the defending champions sought to stamp their authority and set a rematch date with their 2023 rivals Kawasaki Sports who had sealed their grand finale slot earlier in the day.
The defending champions Githurai All Stars (GAS) were on the score sheet thrice as Shauri Moyo kept putting off their Gas in an attempt to dethrone the king. At the end, Githurai All Stars emerged 3-2 victors over the Shauri Moyo side in a tantalizing match that lived up to expectations.
Githurai skipper Kevin Njuguna converted a 4th minute penalty before Abednego Wawire canceled the lead with a sublime strike in the 16th minute.
Nganga Edwin put Githurai back in front in the 30th minute but Wawire again canceled the lead in the 42nd minute. Nganga made the difference in the 56th minute when he slotted in from close range to secure the win for the defending champion.
A rematch against Kawasaki in the 2024 grand finale. GAS burnt up Shauri Moyo United claiming a 3-2 victory to get into the finals.
In the Nairobi West regional finals, Kawasaki booked their place in the Sakaja Super Cup grand finale for the second year in a row after edging out South C Rangers 1-0 courtesy of a lone strike from Ali ‘Aguero’ Maleche to win the Nairobi West Regional finals at Dandora Stadium. Kawasaki booked their slot after winning 4-3 on penalties in their continued match against Asec Huruma which was played in the morning following disruptions yesterday.
The 2024 Sakaja Super Cup ladies chapter will have a new champion as on-form South C Queens go to battle against a tactical Shrink Pack ladies FC in the grand finale set to be played on Friday, December 20th, 2024 at Dandora Stadium.
South C Queens were the better side as they crushed their South B neighbours Nairobi Starlets 3-1 in an entertaining encounter which saw both teams display immense tactical approach.
Maureen Omekede put the South C side in the lead scoring in the first minute of the match before Nairobi Starlets quickly canceled the lead as Mercy Baraza equalized in the 4th minute.
Omekede was at it again as she picked a loose ball from the center of the pitch to add her second goal in the tally in the 24th minute to restore South C Queens’ lead. Margaret Omweri extended the lead as she scored in the 32nd minute to send her side into the grand finale of the second of season of the tournament.
In the Nairobi East regional finals, Shrink Pack FC from Kasarani booked their place in the grand finale after beating Soweto Starlets 2-1 in another mouth watering clash.
With the match tied at 1-1 into the half time break, it took effort for Shrink Pack to engineer a comeback to win the tough test. Soweto was first on the score sheet as Sylvia Apondi put the Nairobi East on the lead in the 45th minute. Shrink Pack recovered from the setback as Mary Kimani scored a brace in the 65th and 82nd minutes to cap their win.
Shrink Pack will now face off with South C Queens on Friday to determine the ultimate Sakaja Cup womens champion.
The ladies chapter was played from the sub county level in both Nairobi West and Nairobi East regions in elimination knock out stages.
The winners of the grand finale will pocked the ladies top prize of Ksh. 1 million with the runners up getting Ksh. 500,000 and the third-place finisher walking away with Ksh. 250,000 in cash prize.
In the men’s category, the winner of the grand finally will walk away with a cool KSh 3 million top prize with the runners up winning KSh 2 million as the bronze medal winner gets KSh 1 million cash prize.
