Tough lessons as Airtel Rising Stars season ends

Hard luck. Uganda Western region players leave the field sad and blue after falling to Buganda 1-0 in the national finals on Thursday at the UICT grounds in Nakawa. PHOTO BY GEORGE KATONGOLE

Exhilaration, inspiration then exasperation all arrived at eighth edition of the Airtel Rising Stars (ARS) tournament which concludes today.
Since June 29 when the games’ return was announced at Pece Stadium in Gulu, the weeks in between have illustrated the constant difficult demands, moments of unexpected jubilation, stories of determination and frustration too, that seem to punctuate every season.
First of all, the games’ return this year after skipping the 2018 season due to logistical issues, promised plenty in store.
It was a welcome return that promised bigger things including a Shs1.5m cash prize for regional winners while national winners will get Shs7m, an increase from Shs5m last year, with the runners-up getting Shs5m.
The games will also leave a landmark. The telecom company donated goal posts, soccer nets and balls to communities and schools where the regional finals were hosted. Besides, there was free sickle cells checkup across the eight Fufa regions.
“Every year, we invest greatly in the development of football talent and we felt it prudent to equip schools and communities to foster talent,” Charity Rwabutomize, Airtel’s Corporate Social Responsibility manager, said.
A big no to Kampala finals
But the sky is falling on the tournament which prides in promoting both girls and boys.
The experiment of hosting the final in Kampala has already robbed the tournament of its teeth. During the qualifying games that were rescheduled to UICT Nakawa and Agoa in Bugoloobi from the StarTimes Stadium Lugogo, there were no fans following the games. Even though the talent on show compensated for the lack of fans, the numbers, any sport craves, will pain the tournament’s popularity in the future. Upcountry venues have successfully held large numbers and maybe the script did not need to be changed.
Competing as regions impractical
The competition format too, leaves a lot to be desired. Eastern region failed to field their strongest side in the national finals after a disagreement on coaching roles. Lifeline’s coach wanted to be the head and when he was snubbed, he reportedly refused to allow his selected players join the regional team. This has continuously happened because real teamwork ends in regions.
Trust High coach George Wamala hinted on this problem during the Soroti finals saying the national finals would be more competitive if winning teams were allowed to represent the region.
Combined regions unsustainable
Relatedly, the idea of combining regions for the finals is a nonstarter. During the finals in Lira which combined Northern and West Nile, were a complete flop.
Simba and Paidha Black Angels are the only two girls’ teams that travelled from West Nile. Ideally they would be eight teams competing. Similar thing happened in Masindi as teams from Western Uganda failed to travel. Steven Tiondi, the Technical Manager of FHL Simba who won the West Nile girls’ final, highlighted the lack of resources as the major challenge.
“For us to come to Lira was a real challenge. We raised funds from well-wishers during our training sessions,” said Tiondi. Indeed the team is run by three men with the other being George Amadi the Technical Director and Saviour Anyovi, the coach.
Too many MRI scans
Age cheats remain alive in the competition and thus players are continuously exposed to MRI scans to determine their age. At the district level, children undergo scan to estimate their age. Yet some of these players are also scanned during the Juniors League as well as when they are on national team duties. Roberts Kiwanuka, the Director of Hoffman family Foundation, which supports Rays of Grace academy, the champions of Buganda Region, said a standard documenting procedure needs to be adopted.
“I think we are exposing these children to many dangers. There must be proper documentation that helps to track these players,” he said.
There are no known side effects of an MRI scan but the use of the strong magnet, there are concerns

Competing tournaments
The timing seems not right. ARS continuously competes with other tournaments that limit players. The FUFA Primary Schools championship, code-named, Odilo, was played at the time Buganda Region finals were being held. There was the UYFA tournament in Masaka too, this weekend. Western Uganda, who also had their own tournament in Ntungamo organised by Lions Academy, never fielded a team to the regional games.
All these tournaments tap into the same age group that ARS targets.