Gallant Junior Starlets fall to England on U-17 World Cup debut

Kenya's Junior Starlets began their debut 2024 FIFA Under-17 World Cup on the wrong foot, going down 2-0 to England in their opening Group C match at the CFC Stadium in Santiago de los Caballetros, Dominican Republic on Friday morning.

Starlets started the match well, with Valarie Nekesa pouncing on a defensive error in the third minute, but her shot went directly to the England goalkeeper Hope McSheffrey.

Using their experience, England then dominated the proceedings with wingers Lola Brown and  Erica Parkinson tormenting from the flanks, but Kenya's backline remained solid to deny them clear goal-scoring opportunities.

It wasn't until the 28th minute that England was awarded a penalty after defender Diana Anyango was penalized for a handball, with Chelsea's Lola Brown making no mistake to slot home past Velma Abwire.

In the second half, coach Mildred Cheche replaced Lindey Weey Atieno and Lorna Faith with Joan Ogola and Susan Akoth in a bid to maintain the flow of the game, but their efforts went in vain.

As the game gained momentum, Laila Harbert brought down Valarie Nekesa in the opponent's box, but the video review maintained it as a clean challenge.

With four minutes to the final whistle, England proved too strong and added their second goal of the match by substituting Lauryn Thompson's solo effort from outside the area to collect maximum points.

While lauding her girls for their gallant display, head coach Mildred Cheche remained optimistic about her side getting better as the tournament wore on.

“I am very proud of my girls for their courageous display.

“Being our first match in a tournament this big, we have picked lessons, and I am confident we will get better.”

In another group C match, two-time champions Korea DPR defeated Mexico 4-1 as Choe Rim Jong scored the first hat trick of the tournament.

Junior Starlets will now face Korea in their next match before winding up group matches against Mexico.