Ibrahim Wanzala’s heroic display sends Kenya to CECAFA U18 final

Kenyan goalkeeper Ibrahim Wanzala produced a heroic performance to send Kenya to the 2023 CECAFA under 18 finals in an end-to-end match against Tanzania staged at the Jomo Kenyatta Stadium in Mamboleo on Tuesday evening.

The Kakamega Homeboyz shot stopper saved two penalties to ensure Kenya got a shot at clinching the regional title after bagging a sweet 4-3 penalty shootout win over arch-rivals Tanzania after the game ended 0-0 after extra time.

Stanley Omondi failed to convert his spot kick but his miss was well covered by Collins Ochieng, Amos Wanjala, Humphrey Aroko and Syphas Owour who all scored their penalties for the famous win for Kenya.

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Owour’s match winning penalty sent the fans into a frenzy with some of them storming into the field to celebrate with Junior Stars.

Match Recap

Tanzania had the best start to the hotly contested match, asking questions of the Junior Stars defense which stood solid.

Kenya’s first opportunity came in the 20th minute when Louise Ingavi headed the ball towards the goal but it was not powerful enough to cause Tanzanian goalkeeper Anthony Mpemba any problem.

In the 31st minute Adrine Kibet unleashed a shot from long range but it was dealt with comfortably by Mpemba.

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Kenya’s Baron Ochieng, who plays for Sofapaka was shown the first yellow card of the match in the 41st minute after committing a foul in the process of stopping Tanzania’s Zidane Sereri.

After the break, the pace of the match did not slow down, with both teams looking for the elusive opening goal.

Rising Stars head coach Salim Babu introduced Duncan Oluoch with less than 25 minutes in place of Kibet to see if he could change the game.

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Oluoch could have opened the scoring for Kenya in the 72nd minute but he failed to take advantage of the pinpoint cross that was whipped in by Joseph Omuse.

Kenya switched on the gears in the 77th minute, launching several attacks towards the Tanzanian goal but Mpemba stood firm to keep his nation into the game.

The match was forced to go into the extra time after none of the two sides failed to score by the end of regulation time.

Immediately after the re-start, Ochieng nearly got himself sent off for committing a silly foul but luckily the centre referee had other thoughts.

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The Kenyan youngsters tried their best to find the winner but it was never to be with the match ending 0-0 at the end of the extra time, leaving the outcome to the luckiest of the two.

In the end, Wanzala came to Kenya's rescue with two huge saves that secured the country's progression to the final.

Football Kenya Federation (FKF) vice president Doris Petra, former Kakamega County senator Cleophas Malala and CECAFA president Wallace Karia were among the thousands of fans who watched the scintillating match.

Kenya will now face East African rivals Uganda, who beat Rwanda 0-1 in the first semifinal, in the finale scheduled to be staged in Kisumu on Friday, December 8.

Rwanda and Tanzania will curtain raise the final as they battle it out for a third-place finish in the 2023 edition.