NAIROBI, Kenya, September 9, 2026 – National under 17 girls football team head coach Mildred Cheche is confident of a positive performance at this year’s World Cup in Morocco.
Cheche has attributed her prediction to the team’s never-say-die attitude that steered them through the qualifiers and onto a second ever appearance at the global showpiece.
“The team has a strong character and I really like their mentality because most of them are fighters. Conceding early doesn’t mean they’ve given up hope. They usually fight up to the last 90 minutes and that is one character for this team that is exceptional,” Cheche said.
She added: “So having that mentality for all the matches and also going to the World Cup. You fight up to 90 plus minutes. I think that will go a long way for us. Behind every match is a week of preparation few people ever see.”
The Junior Starlets earned their second ever ticket to the World Cup courtesy of a 5-1 thrashing of South Africa – on aggregate – in a two-legged final qualifier in July this year.
In Morocco, they will be seeking to navigate their way into the knockout stages by way of Group E where they face the United States, Samoa and China.
The 24-team tournament kicks off on October 17-November 17 in what will be the second consecutive time that the North African country is staging the competition.
Reflecting on their journey towards the World Cup, Cheche recalls the players have never been double-minded about their final destination, even as they kicked off their qualifying campaign against Namibia in April – a match they convincingly won 7-1 on aggregate.
“We can’t let anyone take it away from us. We’re going to fight for everything. We’re going to fight for our country,” she said.
That ruthless focus is going to come in handy at the global tournament when they step onto the turf for their first match, against China on October 19.
