Seth Willis
Tanzania have sealed their place in the Council for East and Central African Football Associations (Cecafa) U20 Championship semi-finals after defeating Somalia 8-1 on Thursday afternoon.
The unstoppable hosts scored their goals courtesy of Kelvin John who scored a hat-trick, Abdulhassan Suleiman, Ben Starkie, Kassim Shaaban, Frank George, and Anuary Jabir. Sahel scored the consolation for Somalia.
Ngorongoro Heroes started the game on a high and it took them just three minutes to open the scoring. Abdulhassan Suleiman controlled the ball from the right well before going past several defenders and finding the back of the net.
Three minutes later, Somalia were on level terms; Tanzania lost the ball from the attacking position and Sahel was fed on the left. He did well to go past his marker before firing past the goalkeeper.
Germany-based Ben Starkie put the Heroes back in front in the 15th minute when the defenders failed to clear a dangerous ball in their 18-yard area. The defender headed the ball and it fell on the path of the forward who had an easy time beating the goalkeeper from less than 12-yards.
Kelvin John fired from close range in the 28th minute to make it 3-1 in favour of his team before scoring his second of the game six minutes later after the opponents left him free in the danger zone.
After the break, Ngorongoro Heroes showed no signs of slowing down as they pushed for the fifth. A good solo run from Kassim Shaaban delivered the goal in the 47th minute with the defenders failing to stop him.
On the hour mark, Kelvin John completed his hat-trick after racing clear and rounding the goalkeeper before putting the goal in an empty net.
Somalia looked lost and confused, with their opponents having a walk in the park. There was no surprise when Frank George added the seventh five minutes later after beating his marker with pace.
The final goal came in the 87th minute when a good cross by David Kameta was converted by Anuary Jabir.
The Hippos of Uganda also sealed their place in the last four after defeating Burundi 6-1 on Wednesday.
Source: goal.com
