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Somalia coach Dadir Ami Ali praised his players for recovering after conceding and maintaining their composure in the shoot-out.

Somalia qualified for the 2027 TotalEnergies CAF U-17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) after beating hosts Rwanda 5-4 on penalties following a 1-1 draw in their CECAFA semi-final at Kigali Pele Stadium on Saturday.

The 2022 CECAFA zonal champions secured the region’s second qualification place after recovering from a second-half setback to force a shoot-out, joining Uganda, who had already booked their place at the continental tournament.

Somalia had earlier eliminated Kenya with a 2-0 victory in their final Group C match on October 14, ending the Junior Stars’ hopes of qualifying for the continental tournament.

Rwanda took the lead through substitute Patrick Ujeneza in the second half, who dribbled past two Somali defenders before beating goalkeeper Khalid Nor. Somalia responded four minutes later when Mohamud Osman scored after Rwanda failed to clear the danger from their penalty area.

Neither side found a winner in regulation time, sending the contest to penalties, where Somalia converted enough of their kicks to eliminate the hosts and reach the final.

Somalia coach Dadir Ami Ali praised his players for recovering after conceding and maintaining their composure in the shoot-out.

“I am so happy that my players remained focused and came from behind to score and later win in penalties. We now go and prepare for the final against a strong Uganda team,” said the Somalia coach Dadir Ami Ali.

Uganda secured the first CECAFA qualification slot with a 4-0 victory over Ethiopia in Saturday’s earlier semi-final. Uganda took control early, with Ukasha Jemba opening the scoring in the second minute with a long-range effort before Arnold Kayemba doubled the lead five minutes later.

Ethiopia struggled to contain Uganda’s attack, allowing Yusuf Ssenyonga to score twice before half-time. Uganda maintained the lead to secure a place in the final.

The Uganda Cubs will meet Somalia in the final on Monday, October 19. Rwanda will face Ethiopia in the third-place play-off on the same day, with the winner claiming the final qualification slot allocated to the CECAFA zone for the 2027 U-17 AFCON.