Back in January this year, Kenya's under 23 football team travelled to West Africa to face Guinea and Senegal in international friendlies. The two West African soccer giants had assembled their biggest names for the 2012 AFCON and could not wait to white wash the Kenyan greenhorns.
when they came, the results surprised every one, including Kenyans who had prepared to welcome youths carrying a bagful of conceded goals. Three days after narrowly losing 0-1 to Senegal, Kenya stood resolute in a 1-1 draw performance against Guinea. Immediately, everyone was waxing lyrical about how this was the team that would save long suffering Kenyan soccer fans from constant humiliation.
Well, six months later, these young Kenyan footballers have an opportunity to prove to every one that indeed, they are the group that will restore Kenya's badly dented footballing ego when they take on a recently impressive Botswana in an international friendly at Nyayo National Stadium on 12 July 2012.
It might be that they performed well in West Africa because they were under no pressure and no one expected them to deliver, or they actually might be the real deal that Kenya has been missing for over eight years now (ditto the 2004 AFCON Harambee Stars outing).
If these lads put out an outstanding performance against fast-rising Botswana, we should all loudly demand that they be given the next Harambee Stars assignment.
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