Harambee Starlets and Junior Starlets laud FKF for organising high-profile friendly matches
The national women’s senior and U17 football teams have praised the Football Kenya Federation for organising recent high-profile friendly matches against Ivory Coast and Morocco. Coaches Beldine Odemba and Mildred Cheche say the matches have been crucial in preparing for their respective 2026 WAFCON and 2025 FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup qualifiers.
The coaches of the Harambee Starlets, Beldine Odemba, and the Junior Starlets, Mildred Cheche, have lauded the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) for organising high-profile friendly matches that have helped their teams fine-tune preparations ahead of crucial qualifiers for the 2026 WAFCON and 2025 FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup respectively.
The Harambee Starlets played two friendlies against Ivory Coast in Abidjan on April 4 and 8, while the Junior Starlets faced Morocco U17 in Rabat on April 4 and 7.
While the Starlets lost both matches to the West Africans 2-0, the Junior Starlets maintained their unbeaten run in 2025, following up a 1-1 draw with a 2-0 win.
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“I thank the federation for organising friendly matches against Ivory Coast. I had requested a game against either them or Senegal because both teams have a similar playing style to The Gambia, who we will face in the final round of the WAFCON qualifiers. They’re also higher-ranked, so it was a real test for us,” said Harambee Starlets head coach Beldine Odemba on Thursday morning at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, after the teams arrived from Ivory Coast.
🎙Beldine Odemba thanks the Federation after heeding her request to play Ivory Coast; targets CECAFA and June window for more preps.#Pepeta #HarambeeStarlets pic.twitter.com/ud2iOZW00j
— Pepeta (@pepeta_ke) April 10, 2025
Junior Starlets head coach Mildred Cheche also welcomed the friendlies, saying: “The two matches were good for us. They provided great build-up encounters to see where we are as a team.”
Despite the losses, Odemba said the friendlies offered valuable lessons ahead of their October qualifiers against The Gambia.
“Ivory Coast are ranked above us and technically better. Playing them showed us the areas we need to improve. I’m looking forward to more friendlies in June so we can work on our weaknesses,” she added, noting that the upcoming CECAFA Women’s Championship would also help the team fine-tune for the qualifiers.
Odemba further confirmed that the squad returned injury-free: “We are fortunate that no player suffered a major injury. A few picked up knocks, but they should be fit to play again within a month.”
Harambee Starlets midfielder Corazon Aquino echoed her coach’s sentiments, saying: “The two matches were a learning experience. They helped us identify our weaknesses, and with more friendlies, we’ll be able to improve before we play in competitive matches.”
Cheche also reflected on the Junior Starlets’ performance in Rabat, saying the games provided a glimpse of areas to sharpen before facing Cameroon U17 in the final qualifying round for the 2025 FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup.
“The result has increased our confidence to face Cameroon,” she said, adding that the team has only one injury concern: “Our winger Joan Ogola picked up an injury, but we expect her to be ready for the matches against Cameroon.”
Morocco will host the 2025 tournament, and Junior Starlets captain Halima Imbachi said the experience of facing their U17 side offered a preview of what to expect.
“Morocco were a good opponent for us as they’re similar to Cameroon in terms of physicality. Our results against them have shown us what we need to do to get past Cameroon,” Imbachi said.
The Junior Starlets are set to host Cameroon U17 on the weekend of April 18/19 in the first leg before travelling for the return leg on April 25/26.
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