The die has been cast and the daggers drawn.
Just who will prevail at the Kakamega Showground and the KCB Ruaraka Sports Club on Saturday?
Four teams-defending champions Kabras Sugar, KCB Rugby Club, Menengai Oilers and Kenya Harlequin- hold the key to this question.
Kabras Sugar, the two times champions host Quins at the Kakamega Showground, fondly known as the forest while the Ruaraka Den comes alive when KCB welcome visiting Menengai Oilers.
Kabras Sugar and KCB earned the privilege of hosting the semi-finals after they finished first and second respectively during the Kenya Cup regular league season that ended on Saturday after 11 rounds of matches.
Kabras Sugar finished top of the log unbeaten with 52 points, one better than eight times champions KCB who lost in one outing as the Oilers, who are yet to win Kenya Cup, settled third with 37 points from seven wins and four losses.
Quins secured their first Kenya Cup semi-final since 2019 when they wound up fourth with 37 points from eight wins and three defeats.
Kabras Sugar and Quins have met 11 times in the Kenya Cup including their 2016 semi-final where Kabras prevailed 19-15. The Kakamega-based side went on to lift their maiden title, beating Impala Saracens 22-5 at the Impala Sports Club.
In a nutshell, Kabras Sugar have prevailed nine times with the Ngong Road-based side beating them last 19-17 at RFUEA and 19-13 in 2017 in Kakamega.
During the just ended regular season, Kabras Sugar edged out Quins for the sixth successive time 27-17 in Kakamega. The Ngong Road side showed great improvement in the match, surpassing the 10-point mark for the first time since 2018 against the sugarmen.
Under their new coach Paul Murunga, Quins started the season from wrong blocks, losing their first three opening matches (KCB 38-0, Oilers 24-10 and Kabras Sugar 27-12) but would pick up not to lose again.
Victory for Kabras who topped the standings for the fifth consecutive time in regular season will not only see them reach their eighth consecutive final but also guarantee them the fourth consecutive home final.
Going by their last outing on December 10, Kabras Sugar can’t afford to be complacent, knowing that Quins have already jelled well under Murunga.
KCB and the Oilers have had eight encounters between them with the bankers prevailing in all but one.
That defeat came last year when Oilers handed the bankers a stunning 24-17 defeat in Kenya Cup semi-final at Ruaraka, which effectively halted KCB’s charge for their fifth consecutive title.
Then the bankers would prove callous when they met during the regular season on February 11 in Nakuru. The end result was 62-15 in favour of the visitors.
Whether Gibson Weru’s Oilers have what it takes to stop the bankers again in the semi-finals is left to be known with the Great Rift side having conceded in four matches during the regular season.
If the Oilers are to uphold their discipline that saw them almost beat Kabras Sugar in their last league outing where they lost 15-13, then KCB will be in for a great encounter.
KCB will have to raise their game and avoid dishing out penalties on contact like the way they performed against Kabras Sugar where they lost 29-23 on February 18.
Nondescripts host South Coast Pirates at the Ngong Racecourse while Daystar Falcons play visiting Kisumu at Strathmore University ground in KRU Championship semi-final.
