Rising Stars dimmed by Morocco in U-20 Afcon opener

Kenya's Rising Stars journey in their debut AFCON U-20 started on a bad note, going down to Morocco 2-3 at the 30th June Stadium in Morocco on Thursday.

Kenya opened the scores through MOFA striker Lawrence Okoth who connected Kevin Wangaya's well taken free kick in the 16th minute.

Wangaya then missed narrowly, a direct free kick five minutes later, as Kenya pushed for a second.

Morocco pushed for an equaliser and their efforts bore fruits just before the break when Mohammed Zabiri collected a punched ball by Kenya's keeper Benard Oyure, restoring parity.

After the breather, Zabiri doubled Morocco's lead in the 54th minute after connecting a chipped cross from man-of-the-match Othmane Maamma.

Kenya leveled in the 71st minute after Aldrine Kibet set up AFC Leopard winger Beja Kitsao who cleverly finished off the move, before Morocco reclaimed their lead through Reda Laalaoui 12 minutes before the final whistle.

Kenyan keeper Oyure saved the team from more embarrassment after saving Maammar penalty in the dying minutes.

Rising Stars Assistant Coach Anthony Akhulia lamented Kenya missed several clear chances, which would have made a difference.

"We missed our chances and then concede cheap goals, but we will rectify and expect good results in the next matches," noted Akhulia, who is also the Head Coach of Kenyan Premier League side Bidco United.

In another Group B match which was staged at the same stadium, seven-time champions Nigeria defeated Tunisia by a solitary goal to launch their campaign on a positive note.

Rising Stars will now face Tunisia in their second match on Sunday at the 30th June Stadium before finalizing their group matches against Nigeria on May 7.

Top two teams from each of the three groups qualify for the quarter finals.

The four semifinalists will book U-20 World Cup to be held in Chile later this year.