体坛英语新闻：Kenya to play Egypt, Morocco in North Africa U-18 football tourney

NAIROBI, March 31 (Xinhua) -- Kenya will for the first time compete at the Union of North African Football Federations under-18 football tournament set to be held in Cairo, Egypt from April 4 to 11.

Football Kenya Federation (FKF) president Nick Mwendwa said the country will be represented by the national under-17 team.

"It is an important development tournament for our youth players to showcase their talent and challenge against some of the continent's best," Mwendwa said on Sunday in Nairobi.

Kenya will come up against Morocco, Algeria and host Egypt, with the tournament set to be played in a round robin format.

The tourney will act as a precursor to the team's upcoming international assignments.

The tournament is part of the North African Cup of Champions and is designed by the Union of North African Football Federations (UNAF).

It brings together the winners of the domestic leagues around North Africa and the national teams. The tournament contains representatives from Egypt, Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia.

Kenya has called to camp 33 players, most of whom played a part in the team's CECAFA U-17 Championships in Burundi last year.

"For continuity, we have retained much of the squad we had last year at the CECAFA Championships. We also did some scouting at the school games as well as the Copa Coca-Cola African Championships, and I am confident that the squad is equal to the task," CECAFA U-17 coach Michael Amenga said.