Kenya Women’s U17 head coach Mildred Cheche has expressed confidence in her team’s ability to overcome Uganda in their 2025 U17 Women’s World Cup qualifier.The Junior Starlets received a bye in the opening round of the qualifiers and now face Uganda, who thrashed Namibia’s Baby Gladiators 18-1 on aggregate to secure a place in the second round.Kenya will travel to Uganda for the first leg, scheduled for Saturday, 8 March 2025, with the return leg set to take place in Nairobi on Sunday, 16 March 2025.##NAJAVA_MECA_8745665##Cheche, who has been working with the squad in camp ahead of the two fixtures, acknowledged the challenge posed by Uganda while highlighting Kenya’s strengths heading into the crucial first leg.“Against Uganda, it will be a very competitive match — both teams want to win — so we are preparing well. This year, we have great quality and very energetic players,” Cheche noted.Having guided Kenya to their historic debut at the 2024 U17 FIFA Women’s World Cup in the Dominican Republic, Cheche is confident that her new-look squad can deliver, even though many of the players who starred in the World Cup have since graduated to the U20 team, leaving her with the task of rebuilding.8 brothers featuring in the Football Kenya Federation Premier League [LIST]“Compared to last year, we both have great teams, and I believe Kenya is very talented. Our big task against Uganda is to try and secure all three points — or at worst, at least a point,” she added.The winner of the Kenya-Uganda clash will advance to face Cameroon in the next round, with a World Cup ticket at stake.After making history as the first Kenyan football team to qualify for a World Cup, the Junior Starlets will be banking on Cheche’s experience and leadership to guide them back to the global stage at the 2025 U17 FIFA Women’s World Cup, set to run from 18 October to 8 November 2025 in Morocco.NSL: Nairobi United chase top spot as Harvest of Hope make debut and Luanda Villa host MOFA
