Africa Cup for Club Champions [ACCC] 34th Men & 25th Women Editions | Blantyre – Malawi 18-26 November 2023.

Western Jaguars closed the gap on defending champions Sharkia to within two points after thrashing Parachute Battalion 13-0 in the ongoing 2023 Africa Cup for Club Champions Tournament (ACCC) in Blantyre, Malawi. Kenyan international Ivan Ludiali scored a hat-trick at the National Hockey Stadium to lead Jaguars to victory as they seek a spot in the final set for Sunday. According to Africa Hockey Federation, the top two teams at the end of the round-robin matches will face off in the finals in both men and women’s categories. Ludiali gave Jaguars the lead in the second minute before Derrick Wakwabubi, Ian Olando and Emmanuel Wiswa made sure the Kenyans led 4-0 at the end of the first quarter. Richard Njuki, Boris Lukorito, Oscar Kibet and Wiswa then made it 8-0 at halftime before Sheldon Kimtai made it 9-0 with 15 minutes left. The last quarter saw Ludiali re-emerge to complete his hat trick with two goals in the 46th and 54th minutes. Wakwabubi and Olando sealed the win. The win saw Jaguars maintain their unbeaten run as they collect their third win of the tournament having drawn one. Jaguars’ only draw came at the hands of hosts Genetrix Hockey Club when they played out to a 0-0 draw. Jaguars began the tournament with a 9-0 win over Scorpions and a 5-0 win over Kampala. Victory placed the Kakamega County-based outfit second on the log with 10 points, two behind leaders Sharkia from Egypt with two matches left. Jaguars will face off against Police Machine on Thursday before playing the defending champions on Saturday. In the women’s category, Blazers Hockey Club’s three-match unbeaten run came to an end yesterday after losing 4-1 to defending champions Ghana revenue Authority (GRA). After a barren first quarter, Mercy Ackon and Rachael Eshun struck in the second quarter as GRA led 2-0 at half time. Monica Reid and captain Elisabeth Opuk sealed the win in the third quarter as Blazers could only manage a consolation goal in the fourth quarter scored by skipper Caroline Guchu. Source: standardmedia.co.ke | November 22, 2023

Kenyan international Aurelia Opondo on Wednesday scored four goals as Lakers Hockey Club hammered Genetrix Hockey Club 10-1 at the ongoing 2023 Africa Cup for Club Champions Tournament (ACCC) in Blantyre, Malawi. Opondo who is the reigning KHU Women’s Premier League MVP took his tally to seven goals in five matches played as Lakers maintained their unbeaten run. Gilly Okumu tops Lakers goal scoring charts after with 10 goals. The former Kenya national team captain added three goals in the big win against Genetrix, her third hat trick in Blantyre. Okumu gave Lakers the lead in the seventh minute after sounding the bar off a penalty corner before Opondo opened her account a minute later to make it 2-0. Okumu grabbed her brace in the 11th minute before Maureen Owiti made it 4-0 by the end of the first quarter. Opondo followed suit with her brace in the second quarter before Lynn Mumbi made sure Lakers took a healthy 6-0 at the break. In the final half, Opondo grabbed her hat trick and then a fourth goal as captain Alice Owiti also joined in on the fun for a 9-0 third quarter lead. Okumu who started the goal fest ended it in the 48th minute to stretch the lead to 10-0. Carlor Nakombe grabbed the hosts’ consolation goal as Genetrix lost 10-1. Lakers are top of the standings with 11 points, a point above defending champions Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA). GRA had earlier hammered Blazers Hockey Club 4-1. Lakers begun the tourney with a 12-0 win over Scorpions before drawing 0-0 with Blazers on Sunday. A whopping 15-0 win over Capital Braves from Malawi followed on Monday before their 2-2 draw with GRA. Source: standardmedia.co.ke | November 22, 2023

2023 Africa Cup for Club Champions Tournament (ACCC) | Blantyre, Malawi

Blazers Hockey Club are confident of toppling nemesis Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) ahead of their Wednesday clash as the 2023 Africa Cup for Club Champions Tournament (ACCC) enters its penultimate stage in Blantyre, Malawi. After three matches, both Blazers and GRA found themselves tied on seven points with three matches left in the seven-team round-robin tournament. Blazers who have scored 27 goals in three matches are currently unbeaten and captain Tracy Karanja said they are going to put in more effort to ensure they maintain their unbeaten streak. Speaking via a phone interview from Blantyre, Karanja said they are confident they can topple GRA despite struggling against the Ghanaian side when they last met in Nairobi last February. “One of our goals when we landed in Malawi was to win the tournament and so far we are on track. A win today over GRA whom we know are a very good side will give us the upper hand,” said Karanja who thanked the Ministry of Sports for sponsoring them in Malawi. “Historically, we have played many times and we have won and they have won some matches but that is not our focus. We are taking one game at a time and we know we will put our best forward.” Blazers began the tournament with a 13-1 win over Genetrix before sharing the spoils in a barren draw with Lakers Hockey Club. On Monday, they hammered Scorpions 14-0. “We wanted not to concede any goal in the tournament but we were unlucky against Genetrix. That’s hockey however. We want to win it in the end. We want not only to be on the podium alone but also with our fellow Kenyan team come Sunday,” concluded Karanja. Lakers and Western Jaguars are the other Kenyan clubs in Malawi. Source: standardmedia.co.ke | November 21, 2023

Lakers Hockey Club on Tuesday maintained their unbeaten run at the ongoing 2023 Africa Cup for Club Champions Tournament (ACCC) after playing out to a 2-2 draw against Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) in in Blantyre, Malawi. Vivian Narkuor gave GRA the lead in the fifth minute of the match as coach Osei Boagye planned more tactical set plays on the touchline.  However, Lakers refused to bow down to the Ghanaians like they did last February when they lost 4-1 in Nairobi. Kenyan international Aurelia Opondo leveled the scores at 1-1 after finishing off a well-orchestrated team goal in the eighth minute. A tight second quarter match-up followed as both teams failed to score to end the match 1-1 at halftime. In the final half, Harriette Night gave Lakers a 2-1 lead after netting in the 36th minute of the third quarter, a lead that just as the first quarter would last only three minutes. This is after Narkuor bagged her brace and GRA’s second to tie the scores at 2-2. Another barren fourth quarter saw Lakers pick a vital point and maintain their unbeaten run in Malawi. After four matches, Lakers lead the standings with eight points followed by Blazers and GRA both with seven points ahead of their match-up today. Lakers started the tournament with a 12-0 win over Scorpions before drawing 0-0 with Blazers on Sunday. A whopping 15-0 win over Capital Braves from Malawi followed on Monday before their draw with GRA. Former Kenya national team captain Gilly Okumu signed temporarily from Amira Sailors leads the scoring charts for Lakers with seven goals as Lynn Mumbi and captain Alice Owiti follow with six goals and five goals respectively. Lakers will rest today. Meanwhile, Western Jaguars will be seeking to bounce back to winning ways after their 0-0 draw with hosts Genetrix Hockey Club. Jaguars who began the tournament with a 9-0 win over Scorpions and a 5-0 win over Kampala will be chasing leaders and defending champions Sharkia from Egypt who lead the log with nine points after their three wins in a row. The Kakamega County-based outfit will play Parachute Battalion from 2pm Kenyan time on Wednesday. Source: standardmedia.co.ke | November 21, 2023

POOL STANDINGS after Day 3: Africa Cup for Club Champions [ACCC] 34th Men & 25th Women Editions | Blantyre – Malawi  18-26 November 2023.

Blazers Hockey Club and Lakers Hockey Club continued with their dominance at the ongoing maiden 2023 Africa Cup for Club Champions Tournament (ACCC) after picking their second wins in in Blantyre, Malawi on Monday. Blazers who begun the tournament last Saturday with a 13-1 win saw off Scorpions from Malawi 14-0. Caroline Guchu and Barbara Simiyu each scored a hat trick in the match as Eleanor Chebet, Maureen Okumu and Flavian Mutiva each netted a brace. Lilian Aura and Beverlyne Akoth rounded off the win for Blazers who move joint top on seven points same as Lakers Hockey Club. Lakers are however top on goal difference after scoring 27 goals and conceding none in three matches. On Monday, the Kisumu-based outfit thrashed Capital Braves from Malawi 15-0 at the National Hockey Stadium to pick their second win in the 10-day tournament being played in a round-robin format.   Lakers captain Alice Owiti gave the Kenyan outfit a dream start after converting a penalty corner inside the opening four minutes before making it 2-0 two minutes later with a well taken field goal. Former Kenya national team captain Gilly Okumu, signed temporarily from Amira Sailors, made it 3-0 in the 10th minute before reigning KHU Premier League MVP Aurelia Opondo and Lynn Mumbi made sure Lakers took a healthy 5-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. Owiti completed her hat-trick in the 15th minute to stretch the scores to 6-0 before passing the scoring mantle to Debra Achieng, who scored a quick brace for a 8-0 half time lead. In the final half, Agneta Nafula joined the party in the 33rd minute to make it 9-0. Okumu bagged her second three minutes later before Achieng completed her hat-trick, her maiden in the continental arena as Lakers led 11-0 at the end of the third quarter. Pauline Ochieng and Elizabeth Awuor made it 13-0 with 10 minutes left on the clock before Mumbi stretched it to 14-0 in the 55th minute. Okumu, who won the 2022 KHU Women’s Premier League title with Strathmore University Scorpions, completed her hat-trick, her second in the tournament to round off the scores. Okumu has now scored seven goals in two matches to lead Lakers’ top goal scoring charts. Mumbi and Owiti follow with six goals and five goals respectively. On Saturday, Okumu scored four goals as Lakers showed no signs of fatigue despite covering 2, 228km by bus from Nairobi to Malawi. They defeated Scorpions of Malawi 12-0. Lynn Mumbi also scored four goals in the match as captain Owiti netted a brace. Aurelia Opondo and Yvette Kanyandong sealed the win. Lakers’ only draw in the tournament came on Sunday when they were held to a 0-0 draw by Blazers Hockey Club. In February, Lakers drew 1-1 against Blazers when they debuted at the delayed 2022 event. Lakers’ only win against Blazers was in May when they stunned the record Kenyan champions 1-0 at Kisumu Day High School in the Kenya Hockey Union Premier League match. Blazers also began the tournament with a 13-1 win over Genetrix as Western Jaguars saw off Scorpions men 9-0. Lakers will play defending champions Ghana Revenue Authority on Tuesday from 10am. Source: standardmedia.co.ke | November 21, 2023

Lakers Hockey Club continued with their dominance at the ongoing 2023 Africa Cup for Club Champions Tournament (ACCC) on Monday after thrashing Capital Braves from Malawi 15-0 at the National Hockey Stadium in Blantyre, Malawi. The win saw the Kisumu County side scored 27 goals in two matches as they seek a maiden title in the 10-day tournament being played in round-robin. Lakers captain Alice Owiti gave the Kenyan outfit a dream start after converting a penalty corner inside the opening four minutes before making it 2-0 two minutes later with a well taken field goal. Former Kenya national team captain Gilly Okumu signed temporarily from Amira Sailors made it 3-0 in the 10th minute before reigning KHU Premier League MVP Aurelia Opondo and Lynn Mumbi made sure Lakers took a healthy 5-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. Owiti completed her hat trick in the 15th minute to stretch the scores to 6-0 before passing the scoring mantle to Debra Achieng who scored a quick brace for a 8-0 half time lead. In the final half, Agneta Nafula joined the party in the 33rd minute to make it 9-0. Okumu made it a brace three minutes later before Achieng completed her hat trick, her maiden in the continental arena as Lakers led 11-0 at the end of the third quarter. Pauline Ochieng and Elizabeth Awuor made it 13-0 with 10 minutes left on the clock before Mumbi stretched it to 14-0 in the 55th minute. Okumu who won the 2022 KHU Women’s Premier League title with Strathmore University Scorpions completed her hat trick, her second in the tournament to round off the scores. Okumu now has scored seven goals in two matches to lead Laker’s top goal scoring charts. Mumbi and Owiti follow with six goals and five goals respectively. On Saturday, Okumu scored four goals as Lakers showed no signs of fatigue despite travelling 2227.6 kilometers by bus from Nairobi to Malawi to win 12-0 against Scorpions of Malawi. Lynn Mumbi also scored four goals in the match as captain Owiti netted a brace. Aurelia Opondo and Yvette Kanyandong sealed the win. Laker’s only draw in the tournament came on Sunday when they were held to a 0-0 draw by Blazers Hockey Club. Lakers being led by Owiti could not sound the bar in the four quarters as they drew for the second consecutive time in the continental event. In February, Lakers drew 1-1 against Blazers when they debuted at the delayed 2022 event. Source: standardmedia.co.ke | November 20, 2023