The hopes of Shanderema Boys High School to compete at the Kakamega County KSSSA 2026 football championship have been dashed after a jury disqualified the school over fielding ineligible players.
The decision followed investigations and deliberations conducted after Shanderema’s controversial Kakamega East Sub-County final match against Mukumu Boys High School, which had initially ended in a 2-1 victory for Shanderema.
According to the jury’s findings, Shanderema Boys fielded seven over-age players and one player from Ambira High School who had not completed the mandatory 90-day transfer period required under the KSSSA constitution.
The ruling, made under Article 14(e) of the KSSSA Constitution, automatically disqualified the school from the championship and handed Mukumu Boys a slot at the Kakamega County championships scheduled to take place at St. Peter’s Mumias Boys High School from June 17 to June 20, 2026.
Mukumu Boys will now represent Kakamega East Sub-county at the county championships despite their earlier defeat on the pitch.
Shanderema responds
In a statement shared on social media before the ruling was finalized, Shanderema defended their victory and questioned the procedure followed during the appeal process.
The school claimed the Monday final, which was rescheduled after crowd disruptions on Sunday, was completed without any formal appeal being lodged within the constitutionally required timeline.
According to the statement, Mukumu Boys had raised concerns alleging that one Shanderema player was over-age while another was a student from Ambira High School. However, Shanderema argued that no official appeal was filed after the final whistle as required by KSSSA regulations.
The school further stated that officials later summoned them to the Sub-county Director of Education’s office, where investigations into player documents were conducted. During the verification exercise, authorities reportedly identified anomalies involving one of the players, leading to the eventual disqualification.
