Football to offer many captivating moments

The 2018/19 There is no prize for guessing the sporting treats that the new year will have in store for us.

We should have a fairly unimpeded view of many of them on the football pitch.
Twenty-nineteen brings with it the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) and Africa under-17 Cup of Nations tournaments, both of which there will be lots of Ugandan interest.

With African football’s showpiece tournament having swelled from 16 to 24 participating countries, there appears to be a theological sense of conviction that the Cranes will earn their stripes this time round.

At the 2017 Afcon finals, Uganda got achingly close to upsetting the applecart during matches against powerhouses Ghana and Egypt.

The Cranes eventually lost both matches by the odd goal, but will be hopeful of getting a favourable draw for the 2019 finals.

This optimism is informed by the fact that Uganda won its qualifying group by a canter.

In March, the Cranes will have the chance of finishing the qualifiers without conceding a goal when they play away to neighbours Tanzania.

Skipper and goalkeeper Denis Onyango’s legend could grow that bit more if he manages yet another shutout in what should be an intriguing derby (any one of Tanzania, Lesotho and Cape Verde has a chance to qualify for the finals).
Speaking of favourable draws, it is profoundly hard to tell if the Cubs got one.

Uganda will come up against hosts Tanzania as well as Nigeria and Angola as it makes it bow in the Africa under-17 Cup of Nations finals. That will be in April.

Observers have had a talent for sentences that are at once self-effacing and impossibly grandiose whilst describing the Cubs’ chances.

The portrait that has consequently been constructed is one that is so piercingly conflicted.

Peter Onen will undoubtedly have a number of precocious players at his disposal, but a lot will depend on how his side tunes up for the tournament.

Domestically, by the time you read this piece, you should know which teams Vipers SC and KCCA FC will come up against in the 2018/19 Caf Confederation Cup playoff round.

Or if indeed the two Ugandan outfits will face each other for a shot at a decent payday during the group stage!
Your columnist filed this piece before the playoff round draw took place on Friday.

One thing though is for sure. Whilst we should brace ourselves to see Mike Mutebi’s trademark face that betrays a mixture of annoyance and concern in KCCA FC’s dugout, the same cannot be said of Javier Martinez Espinoza.
Vipers’ Mexican coach hasn’t endeared himself to both senior management and fans in Kitende.

It’s hard to tell why because the affable coach hasn’t done that much awfully wrong.
Whether he stays or goes, the Venoms should be involved in a fascinating arm wrestle with KCCA FC for the 2018/19 StarTimes Uganda Premier League title.

Work to be done for local rugby in 2019

Although it will be held at the backend of 2019, you have to be demented to hold that the Rugby World Cup, which will enter its ninth staging in Japan from September 20 to November 2, will be just an afterthought in the new year.

The tournament will pull in extraordinary audiences with 19 nations pushing the limits of their performances in a bid to unseat New Zealand’s All Blacks as champions.

Losses against Ireland and South Africa (whom they face at the pool stage together with Italy, Canada and Namibia) this side of the year as well as a drawn series with the British Lions in 2017 have drilled significant chinks in the All Blacks’ armour.

You, however, have to be a brave punter to bet against Steve Hansen’s multi-talented outfit putting in compelling performances in the land of the rising sun.

Neutralising the threat of the All Blacks’ free-running style is easier said than done.

Their grip on the Webb Ellis Cup (New Zealand has won the past two Rugby World Cups) invites comparisons with the deep-rooted and impregnable spell Namibia has enjoyed in the Rugby Africa Gold Cup. The Welwithchias’ dominance can be captured in the fact that they have wound up on the winners’ podium each year since 2014.

The chasing pack, which of course includes Uganda, will be hoping that Namibia’s preparations for the 2019 Rugby World Cup make chances of a sixth consecutive title that much more difficult. Namibia is widely expected to use B-listed players in the expanded 2019 Gold Cup. This should offer a window of opportunity to the likes of Kenya, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

If the 2018 Gold Cup is anything to go by, though, you have to say Uganda’s Rugby Cranes have their work cut out. They found the reverse gear with such absurd ease in this year’s competition, and capped up an underwhelming display with a home defeat at the hands of Zimbabwe’s Sables.

The Zimbabweans also had Uganda’s number in the Africa Sevens, vanquishing Tolbert Onyango’s charges at the semifinal stage in Tunisia as dreams of threepeat went up in smoke.

Zimbabwe eventually beat Kenya to the African title and will go into the 2019 World Series Qualifier in Hong Kong with many games under its belt. The Uganda Sevens, shorn of matches in Dubai and Cape Town, will meantime hope against hope that they don’t remain severely stunted.

What we now know....

We know that 2019 will be a pretty busy year for Ugandan cricket. The first standout piece of action will come off the oval at the tail-end of January when an elective annual general meeting takes centre-stage.

On the field of play, Uganda will get the chance to cover itself in glory when it hosts the ICC Men’s WT20 Qualifier Africa Region finals.

The women’s version of the qualifying event shall meantime take place in Zimbabwe in May. Uganda will put its title on the line.

Elsewhere, we also know that Uganda’s under-19 boys team shall travel to Namibia in March to figure in the World Cup Qualifiers. It promises to be that sort of year: blink and you miss out! Happy 2019, dear reader!

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@robertmadoi