Wananchi show steel
Battle. Peace Anyango shield the ball from DCU's Winnie Alaro (R) in the women's final. PHOTO/ ISMAIL KEZAALA
Wananchi showed mental resilience to win yet another hockey Easter Cup in the women’s category at Lugogo on Sunday.
The side sailed through the pools with wins over Makerere University (6-0), Weatherhead Historicals (2-0) and a goalless draw against Kenyan side United States International University (USIU) to meet Kampala Hockey Club (KHC) Swans in the semifinals.
Flawless DCU
KHC beat Weatherhead (2-1), drew 0-0 with Wananchi Hockey Dreams Foundation (HDF) to finish second in their pool, behind a flawless Deliverance Church of Uganda (DCU) that beat them 1-0.
Having beaten Wananchi in their first league meeting almost a month ago, KHC were up for a charged affair.
An early penalty corner goal from Consolate Muber put Wananchi in pole position. They added a second against the run of play with four minutes to play when Jolly Alimo deflected top scorer Norah Alum’s shot at goal past goalkeeper Loretta Kansiime.
Sudden death
DCU, in the other semi, held USIU in regulation time then won the spot shootouts, which went to sudden death, 5-4 after heroic goalkeeping from Shakirah Nambooze.
In the final, DCU dominated the first half scoring first through Brenda Achayo.
But Wananchi found ways to convert twice in the last 10 minutes through Alum and Doreen Mbabazi to win 2-1.
Hooray. Wananchi ladies and USIU-A men come together for a Kodak moment to show off their Easter Cup trophies trophies. PHOTO/ ISMAIL KEZAALA
Lugogo dances to Awilo
In the men’s semis, Weatherhead also converted late through Colline Batusa and Maxwell Mugisha to eliminate USIU-B 2-1 and render Bill Olang’s early solo effort useless.
In the other semi, tournament top scorer and MVP (most valuable player) Dan Oloo and Richard Wandera scored 10 minutes into each half respectively to eject KHC Stallions.
But in the final, veteran Kenyan midfielder Willies ‘Awilo’ Okeyo put up a pivotal performance for ages to guide USIU-A to a 1-0 victory over Weatherhead.
Weatherhead started the finals by protesting the appointment of umpires Martin Okello and Philemon Ndyamuhaki and ended it with Brian Okodi punching a USIU player in an off the ball incident and goalkeeper Charles Ekapolon trying to confiscate the match book in protests against what they believed to be poor umpiring decisions.
The two are repeat offenders, who never stomach losses but have walked away with slaps on their wrists from UHA in the past.
On pitch, Weatherhead beat USIU-A 2-0 in the pools after Batusa’s backhand shot injured the latter’s goalkeeper.
Strong handles. Weatherhead's Solomon Mutalya was a calming presence for the home team in the finals that they eventually lost to USIU-A. PHOTO / ISMAIL KEZAALA
No more worries
But Awilo’s strong positional discipline at the base of midfield in the final meant USIU were no longer susceptible to the counter attacks and high pressing.
His ability to dance through pressing opponents and release forwards with choreographed passing is probably why he is aptly nicknamed after the popular Congolese musician Awilo Longomba whose Soukous music dominated airwaves in Africa when Okeyo was still a teenager in the late 90s and early 2000s.
If Oloo had not provided most of the winning goals, including in the final, it would have been scandalous for Uganda Hockey Association (UHA) not to name Awilo tournament MVP.
