In a thrilling seven-goal thriller, the Homabay County boys’ team defeated Mombasa to advance to the semifinals of the current Talanta Hela Under-19 national football championship.

The inaugural boys’ quarterfinals were held at Nyayo Stadium on Friday, and the representatives of the Nyanza region triumphed 5-2 after withstanding a fierce onslaught from their unwavering opponents.

In the 22nd minute, Moses Omondi scored the game’s first goal from the penalty spot after a foul in the penalty area.

However, it didn’t take long for Tyrese Odari, the quick-witted attacking midfielder, to set up Abdalla Abdulfafida for an equalizer four minutes later.

Then, in the 39th minute, Cecil Miller took advantage of an appealing through pass from Onyango Kenyatta to smash a rocket past Mombasa custodian Zambia Ali for Homabay’s second goal.

William Gitamu raced down the left channel in the end-to-end match that saw a barrage of possibilities, and seconds before halftime, he lobbing a pass into the area where his colleague Dickson positioned himself tactically to restore parity.

However, Homabay wasn’t finished yet. In the 61st minute, Godwin Owino found Ben Ogutu with a precise pass that the striker happily buried into the open net, essentially regaining their advantage.

The gifted Homabay midfield would eventually score two goals quickly after some brilliant passes in the midfield.

Cecil Miller scored his second goal of the game and Homabay’s fourth when Hamisi Otieno’s ball on the outskirts of the box found his foot and burned a hole in the net.

Five minutes later, Miller was again in the thick of things, helping Geoffrey Omondi drive a rocket past the net to put the final nail on Mombasa’s coffin.