Sseguya: The glass is half-full

KAMPALA.

Rugby Cranes coach, Robert ‘Soggy’ Sseguya is one that believes in tenets of ultimate hard work. And by his own admission, it takes a lot to impress him.

But at the moment, he believes the team is shaping up well for the international engagements which start with a home Elgon Cup encounter against regional rivals Kenya on June 10.
Uganda has five international games this year against Kenya, Senegal, Tunisia and Namibia in the Africa Tier 1A, which will also double as 2019 World Cup qualifiers.

“I can say that fitness-wise, we are heading in the right direction. These boys have really worked hard in training. And they know that to work with Soggy you must be ready for blood and sweat,” he said after Wednesday’s training.

Of course a few challenges still abound, but Soggy chooses to look at the positives. For instance, certain players haven’t regularly trained due to work-related issues.

“For me, it doesn’t matter who is here. The players who work their skins off will be the ones to play. It’s as simple as that. No one should feel assured of a position.

“Those who are not giving 100 per cent should know that no one is bigger than Uganda,” added the former Cranes star.
Marvin Odongo, Pius Ogena and veteran Alex Mubiru, who all picked injuries during the Cranes friendlies with Kenya’s Kabras a fortnight ago, are undergoing light sessions.

Uganda played two friendlies against Kabras, losing one and drawing the other. Last weekend, they beat Legends Barbarians in a performance that left a lot to be desired. They committed a number of simple mistakes like forward passes and knock-ons.
They play Kyadondo Barbarians this Saturday and Sseguya will be praying that they stick to his script.

“No more room for errors. We are approaching a critical moment of trimming the team. So whoever sleeps on duty will have slipped out of our plans.”

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