Hippos search for point against battered South Sudan
Hippos' Abbasi Kyeyune (L) drives pass Senegal's Mamadou Lamine Sadio at Accra Stadium. PHOTO/JOHN BATANUDDE
What you need to know:
Since April 2018 when Uganda Hippos mauled the northern neighbours 8-1 in the 2019 U-20 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, this derby has served some interesting duels as the Sudanese fight to narrow the gap.
Uganda and South Sudan will renew their rivalry when their under-20 boys face again as group schedules for the 2023 Africa Games climax at the University of Ghana and Accra Sports Stadiums on Friday.
Since April 2018 when Uganda Hippos mauled the northern neighbours 8-1 in the 2019 U-20 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, this derby has served some interesting duels as the Sudanese fight to narrow the gap.
The two sides met again in November 2020 in the U-20 Afcon 2021 qualifiers settling for a goalless draw and jointly-topping a group in the Cecafa qualifiers as Hippos went on to make their continental debut.
The Hippos again managed to beat the Sudanese 2-1 in the Cecafa final that served as the U-20 Afcon 2023 qualifier, which both qualified and reached the quarterfinals to qualify for this year's Africa Games in Ghana.
What’s interesting in this derby is that a good number of South Sudanese players are actually naturalized players who were born in Uganda lighting up the stage for bloody brotherly duels.
The Hippos qualified for the semifinals after beating Nigeria and Senegal to lead Group B with six points while South Sudan are bottom after losing to both West Africans 1-0.
With the two West Africans standing on three points and meeting again today, South Sudan is all but out while Uganda may need a point to win the group but it is not guaranteed.
“South Sudan seem to be out of the competition but we are not underrating them because they’ll try to prove [a point] against us yet we want to finish on top,” Hippos assistant coach Simeone Masaba told Daily Monitor.
“They are a neighbor who has been improving so much in every age category so it will be a good test for us,” he added.
In the other group, Ghana who lead Pool A with four points will face Benin at the same time Congo play Gambia. Benin and Congo are tied on two points after drawing both games 0-0. The winner of Group B will face the runners-up in Group A and vice versa.
2023 Africa Games
Friday’s fixtures
Benin vs. Ghana, Accra Sports Stadium – 8 pm
Congo vs. Gambia, University of Ghana – 8 pm
Senegal vs. Nigeria, Accra Sports Stadium – 11 pm
Uganda vs. South Sudan, University of Ghana – 11 pm
