Silverbacks, She Cranes and Gazelles show Cranes way to ‘Uganda’s year’

‘This is Uganda’s year’ is one song sports fans in the country have sung to the point the national anthem also felt vulnerable.
Yet Ugandans have still found ‘this is Uganda’s year’ relevant every Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers; and to some eternal optimists – every World Cup qualifier.

Perhaps they are not entirely wrong. But for now Uganda’s wait for a first appearance at the Nations Cup in 37 years will linger on until perhaps November, or even earlier.
But September, albeit seeing the national football under 17 team’s run in the 2015 Africa Youth Championship qualifiers ended by Zambia at the last hurdle, is somewhat turning out to be the pivot month of ‘Uganda’s year’.

With the rest of the local dirt and wrangles majorly remaining at large in most of our sports disciplines – others like basketball putting in decent shifts notwithstanding-, it is netball and basketball that have made the final straights to steal international thunder even if it is just for qualifying. For now.

Of course athlete Moses Kipsiro’s feat at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games of being the only Ugandan to return home with gold after becoming the only man to defend the 10,000m comes to mind, and undoubtedly counts in ‘Uganda’s year.’
But it is basketball and netball that have broken their jinxes to have the country reverberate again in some long time.

Having serviced their ambitions – from finishing third in the African Netball Championship in Malawi to winning the Six Nations Cup in Singapore last year - on handouts, the She Cranes finally ended a 35-year absence from the Netball World Cup last month by qualifying for next year’s edition in Sydney.
The national basketball team also qualified for Afrobasket – basketball’s equivalent of Africa Cup of Nations – for the first time when Uganda hosted the Zone V in 2005 but did not participate after government and the federation failed to raise money for the trip. So, while the Silverbacks feat in qualifying for next year’s edition to be held in Tunisia created effervescent vibes across the basketball fraternity, it was not a first.

But it was the perfect reward for the boys, Fuba, sponsors and the different stakeholders for the effort and resources invested in the local game. It was even sweeter for the ladies national team, the Gazelles, who had never made it to Afrobasket.

The Gazelles not only qualified for Afrobasket to be held in Cameroon, but also the All Africa Games after finishing as champions unlike their male counterparts, whose second place-finish behind Egypt earned them only the Afrobasket tricket.
The two teams broke barriers that had over the years seen them and other Ugandans gasp at the final hurdle. They have deleted the continental jinx while the national netball team – the She Cranes - will be rubbing shoulders with the best in the world.

The trio have done it the hard way, with self-belief the overriding factor. It is that belief that has Uganda Cranes dreaming again.With two top teams in every group qualifying automatically for the Nations Cup in Morocco next year, Uganda – who are level with Ghana on four points but top due to a one-goal difference – are in with some real shout this time.
Well, you have heard that statement before; and true we have been here before and choked profusely.

But so have the She Cranes, Silverbacks and Gazelles. Can the Cranes join the former three in completing ‘Uganda’s year?’ Togo next Saturday should provide a part of the answer.

STRIKER SSENTAMU MERITS MORE PLAYING TIME UNDER MICHO
This is by no means an effort to blow Yunus Ssentamu’s potential out of proportions, nor is it an endeavour to downplay his capabilities.

The 20-year-old striker has had his fair share of woes, including being vended to several South African clubs after his impressive three goals in as many games at the Africa Nations Championship (Chan) before finally ending at DRC’s AS Vita.
And when he did arrive at Vita, injuries first headlined his homecoming; seeing him return home to Kampala for rehabilitation before playing part in Uganda’s 2-0 victory over Mauritania as a late substitution.

He was an unused substitute in the 2-0 win over Guinea early last month and that is just as much as he has been involved competitively with Cranes since making a scoring debut in Chan, South Africa in January/February. How he finished off those chances against Burkina Faso (2-1 win) and Morocco (3-1 defeat) erases any doubts about his finishing class, his positional and game reading sense, plus a young football brain.

All the above have been witnessed in training when invited by Micho Sredojevic, but more so where it matters – at the club continental stage. After his rehabilitation in Kampala, Ssentamu returned to Vita in time to score in his side’s 1-0 victory over Egypt giants Zamalek in round five of the Caf Champions League in August. He could only make the Cranes bench against Guinea last month but scored again in Vita’s 2-1 victory over Sfaxien en route to the final of the 2014 Caf Champions League.

In both goals he displayed a rare knack of awareness, sharpness and precise finishing. Brace hero against Guinea, Geoffrey Massa is of course expected to lead the line against Togo, with Emmanuel Okwi returning from injury, Brian Umony and Daniel Sserunkuma all in the mix. But it is time Ssentamu is given more responsibility in the team, not just late substitution cameos.