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Celebrations, pain and disappointment are expected today as curtains fall on 2023 Kenya Secondary Schools Sports Association (KSSSA) National Term One games here in Eldoret.
Having made a good account of themselves and sealed their tickets to this year's Federation of East Africa Secondary Schools Sports Association (FEASSSA) games set for Rwanda, the last standing teams will be out to crown their outing with national titles.
New champions will be crowned in rugby 15s and boys' basketball after Dr Aggrey faltered in the semis. Girls defending champions Kaya Tiwi will relish their chance to successfully defend their title when they clash with Butere Girls in a repeat of their last Group A match and the 2018 final.
A showdown is looming in the rugby 15s final encounter as All Saints Embu face off with Butula Boys from Western.
Butula will fire from all cylinders as they seek to firm grip on the trophy in the absence of their Western region compatriots Kakamega High who are the 2019 champions and record holders. All Saints beat St Anthony's Kitale 18-5 while Butula drubbed Ofafa Jericho 18-0 to set the final date. St Anthony's and Ofafa will meet in the third place playoffs.
Butula coach Shimenga Livondo who has never shied away from making his intentions to lift the national trophy known will be looking to complete the job.
"We had our eyes on the national trophy even before we started competing at the sub-county level. We knew that we had to work very hard in order to achieve our goal and I'm glad that we are a match away from making it happen," Livondo said.
Surprise-package All Saints who have also been very impressive stand between Butula and the title.
Though the sides will be meeting for the first time, Shimenga and his All Saints counterpart Benson Mwenda are no strangers. The two coaches have had encounters before when Shimenga was at St Peter's Mumias while Mwenda coached Kangaru School.
Mwenda, who had a successful stint with Kangaru, said that his charges had gained confidence with every match they played.
"I'm confident that my boys will make their place in the final count. They have improved with every game and I think that they have what it takes to win the title."
In basketball, former champions Laiser Hill will lock horns with perennial rivals Dagoretti High in today's final. The two sides triumphed in their respective semi-final matches to inch closer to the title.
Laiser Hill beat Lukenya School 68-36 whereas Dagoretti High dismissed last year's winners Dr Aggrey 59-52. It was sweet revenge for Dagoretti who had their dreams of winning their maiden title crashed in last year's final.
However, Dagoretti will be wary of Laiser Hill who will be out to avenge their semis loss that saw them surrender their trophy and miss out on last year's East Africa games. Dr Aggrey will take on Lukenya in the boys' third place playoffs tie.
After putting up a spirited fight against gritty Loreto Limuru to squeeze 49-46 victory and book a place in today's final, Kaya Tiwi will be hoping to extend their good run against Butere. Kaya Tiwi have outshone Butere in their last two encounters and even beat them at the group stage on Day Three of the games. Loreto Limuru and Our Lady of Mercy who lost 36-64 to Butere in the other girls' last four encounter will play for a place on the podium.
