The Harambee Stars were roped in as Bafana Bafana's last-minute opponents after Burkina Faso could not commit themselves. But even their good gesture was not enough to spare them Bafana's wrath.
Davide Somma scored the hosts' opener in the first minute with an easy tap from Anele Ngcongca's cross.
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| Steven "Schillo" Pienaar |
The visitors were probably still wondering what the match announcer was trying to say with his bold statement that Bafana had improved "dismally" on the Fifa rankings when the Leeds United striker struck.
Somma, spurred on by his first Bafana goal, was a real menace to the visitors' defence and should have scored his second goal in the 12th minute after the comical Kenyan goalkeeper, Zacharia Onyango, fluffed Ngcongca's cross - but his shot came off the upright.
Despite Bafana's early lead, they could not settle down and knock the ball around, and Kenya nearly made them pay in the 20th minute - but Daniel Oliech shot straight at Bafana goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune.
Four minutes later, captain Steven "Schillo" Pienaar broke through after being set up by Somma, but shot wide under pressure from the Kenyan defence.
The Tottenham Hotspur midfielder would not make the same mistake on the stroke of half-time as he blasted home from inside the box after a short corner from Siphiwe "Shabba" Tshabalala.
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Although there were no goals in the second half, Bafana were much improved and created plenty of chances, but poor finishing once again let them down.
Thulani Serero came in for Bernard Parker and although he was at times easily pushed around by the bigger Kenyan players, he should be satisfied by his overall performance.
Andile Jali was voted Man of the Match, and the enterprising Orlando Pirates midfielder said the win has motivated Bafana before their crucial Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Egypt next month.
Though he was happy with the win, coach Pitso Mosimane lamented Bafana's failure to convert chances. "We created a lot of scoring chances but we could not finish them off. But it is important that we won tonight," he said. He was also impressed by Serero's display.
In Sudan, Myron Shongwe struck twice in the second half as South Africa defeated Niger 2-0 to seal an African Nations Championship quarter-finals place.
Source ; Sowetanlive .co.za
