Lamu's Talanta Hela hailed as 'success' amidst call to use football to nurture talent

The tournament that began on June 1st ended in a thrilling final between Kizingitini from Lamu East and Barcelona from Lamu Island.

In a match played at Bright Star Stadium in Shela Ward, both finalists fought tooth and nail to prove their worth on the field after a tough knockout round on Saturday.

Kizingitini scored the first goal of the match from a thunderous free kick from Bwanahamadi Ahmed before their Mursal Shelali doubled the lead in the dying minutes of the first half.

The two first-half goals from Kizingitini gave Barcelona more questions as they headed to the break. Barcelona dominated the game after the break but was unable to penetrate Kizingitini’s solid defence.

Their efforts bore fruits after they forced Kizingitini’s defender to make a dreadful foul inside the penalty box in the final stages of the game.

Barcelona stepped up and clinically converted the penalty behind the net before the game ended in a 2-1 win in favour of Kizingitini.

Speaking during the issuance of prizes to the winners, Lamu Governor Issa Timamy congratulated both teams for the spirited fight they put in during the match.

The governor also announced that her administration will select 25 people from the teams to represent Lamu County in the inter-counties games later this year.

Timamy said the aim of the tournament is to nurture talents, promote a healthy lifestyle among the youth and eradicate drug abuse and criminal activities.

“We brought in former Harambee Stars coach Mohamed Heri during the inter-wards games to help us scout for 25 players who we will send to the camp to prepare for the inter-counties games,” the county boss said.

The Majority Leader in the Lamu County Assembly Bwana Bwana who was also present at the event, emphasized the importance of playing sports in the community.

He noted that the county assembly had already passed the budget for sports development, and it is now up to the executive to ensure that such games are regularly played to encourage professionalism in football.

“Football is the most paying job today, and I believe we have talented youths who can play professional football. It’s upon leaders to ensure we help these youths realize their dreams by organizing such tournaments often, '' said Bwana.