Kawalya, Ssali and Magala were charismatic keepers with flair

Silky Shot-Stoppers. Between 1995 and 2001, Ugandan football had no specific number, one goalkeeper, for the national team -Uganda Cranes. Any one of Fred Kajoba (Coffee), Ibrahim Mugisha (KCCA), Sam Kawalya (Express), Hussein Ssali (KCCA), and James Magala (Express) stood an equal chance of being named in the Cranes starting line-up. From that era, Ssali, Kawalya, and Magala hardly bored fans.

JAMES MAGALA

Magala was nicknamed Benard Lama for having a similar goalkeeping style with the Ex-France and Marseille goalkeeper. 
During his career, Magala was undoubtedly one of the most travelled Ugandan footballers who plied his trade in a number of countries. 

He played in Tanzania, Thailand, Vietnam, India, England and Maldives. Magala’s interest in goalkeeping developed at an early age when he was attending primary three at Mawerere Primary School in Wakiso district during the 80s.
 
In 1991, he joined Kololo SSS his dream to be number suffered a great setback when he found out that the school already had an outstanding goalkeeper in Livingstone Kyobe. 
Kyobe, who later played for SC Villa and Uganda Cranes, hardly missed a game. Magala couldn’t get a look in. He thought about changing school.

That was how Magala left Kololo and joined St. Balikuddembe SSS, Mitala Maria in Mpigi district. There, he was an instant hit. There, he played alongside Matia Lule and Joseph Kiwanuka. All three often travelled to Kampala to feature for State House in the national league.

Magala had previously featured for Manza, Bwaise, Wolves, Bell and Nakivubo Carols in short spells while seeking a breakthrough. From State House, he moved to Express in 1995 where he found Abu Kigenyi and Issa Bin Mungu. Kigenyi’s howler against Orlando Pirates in a continental game handed the club’s gloves to Magala.

In that Caf Champions League semifinal, Express needed to win by a clear two-goal margin to eliminate the South Africans having lost the first leg 1-0.

Andrew Arinaitwe put Express in lead but in the second half, Kigenyi blundered and allowed an equalizer by Pirates’ Gavi Lane.
Kigenyi was accused of throwing away the game by fans. He was an outcast after that and left the club. Magala got an opportunity to start games frequently at club and national level.  He won the Uganda Cup with Express in 1997, beating Umeme 4-1 in the final. This took them to 1998 Afrcan Cup Winners Cup tournament.

Express eliminated Al Mourada of Algeria in the first round before narrowly falling to Esperance of Tunisia in the second round.

In 1999, Magala signed for Tobacco of Thailand before relocating to England in 2001 where he joined League two side, FC Barnet as a trainer and later non-league White Horse FC (2002-2003).  Magala also played for Dang Nang of Vietnam (2004), Kagera Sugar of Tanzania (2005) and New Radiant SC of Maldives. He retired in 2007 with his last club being Radiant of India. 
Magala holds Caf A and B coaching licenses. That has given him coaching stints Seeta, Masaka LC, Nalubaale, Express, Kira Young, Police, Bul, Benadir (Ethiopia) and the Somalia national football team.

Magala is also the goalkeeping coach of the U-17 national girls’ team. Magala is a preacher of the how a modern goalkeeper should interact far more with the feet than his hands.       
 

MAGALA FACT FILE 
(ACHIEVEMENTS)

• He played for State House while still a High School student.
• He played for Bell, Wolves, Nakivubo Carols and Express.
• He played for Kagera Sugar (Tanzania) Tobacco (Thailand), Dang Nang (Vietnam) and New Radiant (India).
• He was a trainer at English league two club FC Barnet in 2001.
• He was a trainer at English non-league club White Horse (2002-2003).
• He won the 1997 Uganda Cup with Express.
• He represented Express FC in 1998 Africa Cup Winners Cup.
• As coach, he played a role in Nalubaale promotion to the topflight.
• He has coached Express, Seeta, Masaka LC, Nalubaale and Bul.
• He was the goalkeeping coach for the Somalia national team and Benadir (Ethiopia).
• He holds both Caf coaching licenses A and B.

HUSSEIN SSALI

UPDF’s assistant coach Pius Ngabo regards Ssali among the naturally gifted goalkeepers Ugandan football has ever produced.

“Whereas most keepers usually get good form by training hard, there are those with natural talent who most times perform well without necessarily practice. Hussein belonged to this (the latter) group. He was a good game reader and superb in organizing his defence department.” Ngabo remarks.  

During the 1990s, Sadiq Wassa was the undisputed number one goalkeeper for KCCA and Uganda Cranes. He enjoyed all the praise.  Then came the year 1996 when a youthful Ssali arrived at Lugogo fresh from High School as Naggalama Islamic Institute.

It took him just a season to end the otherwise successful chapter of Wassa at KCCA. Ssali had a lot in common with his predecessor Wassa, along with his namesake Paul Ssali, who guarded the KCCA posts in the 1970s.

All three, started in different positions only to end up in goal. In his case, Hussein was a right winger during his primary school days at Kampala Primary School. In fact, he earned the nickname of “seven” for his ability to cross the ball.

Hussein shifted to the goal exactly the same way Paul did while still playing for Masindi artillery regiment. One day, the school team’s goalkeeper failed to turn up for a fixture against a rival school. The games master requested Hussein to try that unfamiliar position.  To everyone’s surprise, Hussein had a good performance and went on to save three post-match penalties.

From then on, Hussein was compelled to remain in that position with the previous first choice becoming his understudy.

Upon completion of primary education, Hussein joined Old Kampala SSS where he continued with his heroic saves between the sticks.  

However, it was at Naggalama Islamic Institute, a school then-known for giving bursaries to talented football students that Hussein’s goalkeeping talent improved tremendously.  

His cohort also had Ibrahim Sekagya, Mohammed Byansi, Haruna Mawa, Wilson Ggayi and Lawrence Musoke all of whom went on to play for Uganda at youth level.

Coach Mike Mutebi is the one who picked Hussein Ssali for KCCA. At the time he moved to Lugogo, many thought he was there to make up numbers since Sadiq Wassa and Valley Musisi were one and two respectively. 

Hussein realized it enough and approached Mutebi requesting to be loaned out to a smaller club where he would get a chance of being fielded rather than sit on the bench.
 Trust Mutebi’s experience and sharp eye that noticed the potential in some players. “No,” Mutebi told Hussein in the affirmative.

He asked the youth prodigy to train harder because there was no possibility of leaving. 
 At the beginning of the 1997 season, KCCA’s two goalkeepers told Mutebi that they needed more body conditioning before being fielded. 
The coach had no choice but to field the inexperienced Hussein in the opening match of the season against SC Villa. He passed the test, keeping Villa at bay.

Hussein’s grew with each appearance and became the club’s number one consequently relegating Wassa and Mussi to the bench.

Mid-way that season, Mutebi left and was replaced by Tom Lwanga. The status quo was maintained as KCCA went on to win the league for the first time since 1991.

Hussein let in only 19 in 30 matches. Uganda Sports Press Association (Uspa) took note, voting him footballer of the year.

KCCA’s run to the Caf Cup semifinal that year also had Hussein in goal throughout before losing to eventual winners Esperance of Tunisia.  At national level, Hussein was part of the U-23 Kobs squad that qualified for the 1999 All Africa Games in South Africa.

In the Cranes team, his emergence checked the likes of Fred Kajoba and Ibrahim Congo. That made Hussein part of the team in the 2000 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.

Away from Uganda, Hussein was part of a group of promising footballers that took their studies seriously. He was granted a student visa to study in the US.

In 1999, he joined Alabama State University and later relocated to Virginia where he graduated in Sports Management. There, Hussein also turned out for Boston Sports Club in Massachusetts.       
 
SSALI FACT FILE 
(ACHIEVEMENTS)

• Excelled at Naggalama Islamic Institute but lost 1995 schools final to Kibuli SSS. 
• Joined KCCA straight from high school
• At KCCA, he dislodged Sadiq Wassa.
• Won the 1997 league title with KCCA.
• Conceded 19 goals in 30 games in 1997.
• Voted the 1997 Footballer of the Year by Uganda Sports Press Association. 
• Played for KCCA in the 1997 Caf Cup enroute a semifinal finish. 
• Was a member of the U-23 Uganda Kobs team at the All Africa Games.
• Was part of the Cranes squad for the 2000 Afcon qualifiers. 
• He studied and played for Alabama and Virginia universities in America.

SAM KAWALYA

Kawalya was such an acrobatic and confident goalkeeper who commanded his 18-yard area with distinction. While he was an astute shot-stopper, he also played on the forward line as a number nine when need arose at Simba.

Kawalya had emerged on the Ugandan soccer scene unexpectedly. Those who went to school with him at Lubiri SSS noticed his unique goalkeeping tactics and predicted that he would one day be the talk of the country.  The school, known for grooming talented footballers, molded him into a good goalkeeper. 

Later, Kawalya played for Nsambya where other prominent keepers like Tom Musoke and Denis Onyango horned their careers.
 
Though Kawalya’s career at Nsambya did not blossom, it introduced him to the local games outside the protected confines of school.  Umeme signed him soon after but before he could settle in, the club lost its financial backing from the power company leading to player exodus.

Kawalya ended up at Express. The club already had two outstanding keepers in Abu Kigenyi and Richard Tushabe with his arrival being seen as another understudy.
 
He trained hard to get to a level of recognition. After a slow start, Kawalya was the talk of Wankukulukuku during the 1998 season.
 
Kawalya fitted well in the club system that also had James Odoch, Ibrahim Buwembo and Peter Lwebuga.  In 2001, Kawalya won the Uganda Cup with Express beating rivals SC Villa 3-1 in the final. The following season, Express reached the second consecutive Uganda Cup final but lost 2-1 to Villa.

They made it three in a row in 2003, beating Police 3-1 in the final. After he left, they made a fourth straight Uganda Cup final but lost the final to KCCA in a post-match penalty shootout.  Despite this, Kawalya’s time at Express was not at all a bed of roses. For instance; whenever he happened to have a poor performance against Villa, fans would label him a traitor and always accused him of being a supporter of their rivals.  At the end of the 2003 season, he had nothing more to prove at the Red Eagles and decided to face a goalkeeping challenge outside Uganda.

He was signed by Vietnamese Club Binh Duong and played two seasons, becoming a darling. Kawalya returned to Uganda in 2007 and joined Simba, featuring for them till June 2008.  Between July 2008 and June 2010, Kawalya was at Victors FC. Even with this smaller club, he continued with his heroic display in goal when the club won the 2008 Uganda Cup, edging Kinyala 1-0 in the final.

Victors went on to represent Uganda in 2009 Caf Cup where they were eliminated by Caps United of Zimbabwe in the preliminary round.   
At national level, Kawalya was first summoned to the U-17 youth team in 1996 with other players that included  Ibrahim Ssekagya, Morley Byekwaso, Hussein Ssali and Hakim Magumba.

In 1999, he was the first choice keeper for the U-23 Kobs team that qualified for the All Africa Games in South Africa. The team reached the semifinals and finished fourth. 
For the senior team, he was capped 12 times between 1998 and 2001. Kawalya was also first choice when the Cranes hosted and won the 2000 Cecafa Senior Challenge Cup. Later that year, during the era of Nigerian coach Harrison Okagbue, Uganda won the inaugural Castle Lager Cup eliminating Ghana’s Black Stars in the semifinals.
 
In the final against hosts Kenya, goalkeeper Ibrahim Mugisha got injured with just a minute to the end of the match. Kawalya was brought in with the score at 1-1 and went on to save two penalties in Uganda’s 4-2 shootout victory. 
 
However, like all goalkeepers, Kawalya’s gaffe came during the 2002 World Cup qualifier at Nakivubo when he let a weak shot from Guinea’s Pascal Feindouno slide just under his body into the net for the visitors to equalize in what ended as a 4-4 stalemate.
 
He remains one the best this country has produced. In 2015, when former Cranes skipper Sekagya was asked to name his best eleven, he picked Kawalya.
 
In retirement, Kawalya has had coaching careers at Kyebando, Mbarara City, Kitara, Citizen, Victors and Express where he is an assistant presently.

KAWALYA FACTFILE 
(ACHIEVEMENTS) 

• Started playing football while in secondary school at Lubiri SS.
• Played for Express, Simba and Victors.
• Played for Binh Doung in the Vietnamese National League.
• Was in Express team that beat SC Villa 3-1 to win the 2001 Uganda Cup.
• Was in Express team that defeated Police 3-1 to lift the 2003 Uganda Cup.
• Reached three consecutive Uganda Cup finals with Express in 2001, 2002 and 2003.
• Was in Victors team that beat Kinyara 1-0 to win 2008 Uganda Cup.
• Represented Victors in the 2009 Caf Confederation Cup.
• Could also play on the forward line.
• Was the first choice goalkeeper for the U-23 Kobs team for 1999 All Africa Games in South Africa.
• Won the 2000 Cecafa Senior Challenge Cup.
• Saved two penalties when Cranes beat Kenya to win the inaugural Castle Cup in 2000.
• Former Cranes skipper Ibrahim Ssekagya named him as the best keeper he ever played with.