The final push

Time To Deliver. Kunihira (celebrating) and Nabbumba (dribbling an opponent) will be the ladies to watch. PHOTOS/JOHN BATANUDDE
 

It is make or break day as curtains draw on the 2022 Fufa Women Super League (FWSL). Attention turns to Makerere University Business School (Mubs) where hosts She Corporate only need to hold Kampala Queens (KQ) to clinch their first ever league title.
Both teams are tied on 38 points after 17 games with only a marginal goal difference coming between them.
Also in terms of history, little separates them. She Corporate have been in the topflight league since its inception in 2015 and are only making their third attempt at winning the title.
Record champions (four titles) Kawempe Muslim stopped the Sharks’ dream in the 2015 playoff semifinals and the 2016 finals. KQ, on the other hand, are late entrants having come to the fray in 2017 and building a base around players that had left the now defunct Buikwe She Red Stars.

Near misses
But they too have been to two playoff semis ended by eventual champions Kawempe in 2018 and runners-up Lady Doves in 2019. She Corporate, however, know that it has been their title to lose for a while.
Coach Hassan Isa’s side enjoyed a five point lead at the halfway point but that slipped to nought after the restart in; a 1-1 draw with Rines, a 2-2 draw with Uganda Martys High School (UMHS) Lubaga and 5-0 loss to Lady Doves.Isa had to adopt a more direct long ball approach, made possible with the varied passing range of new defensive signing Stella Musibika,  to reignite the spark in Phiona Nabbumba, Ronah Regina Nantege and lead striker Favour Nambatya to arrest the slide.

An injury to Grace Nassongo in the 1-0 win over Tooro Queens, a match Nambatya missed, on Tuesday means he could be forced to change his attack again. KQ have managed to close the gap by winning all their second round game bar one - which they drew 2-2 with UMHS.
Only a win would suffice for coach Hamza Lutalo’s side. And with goals flowing in regularly from Margaret Kunihira, Resty Nanziri, Zainah Nandede and Shamirah Nalugya recently, the bigger prayer for the KQ faithful will be for the defence to turn up.

Other battles
The other battle of the day is in Soroti, where Kawempe Muslim must beat hosts Olila High School to finish in the top half of the 10-team log. Both teams are locked on 21 points but the hosts can do with a draw as they have the better goal difference. The relegation battle is also hardly sorted.
The bottom sides Tooro Queens, on 13 points, and She Maroons, on 12, meet at Luzira Prison Grounds.

However, even a win for either might not be enough if Rines SS, on 14 points, pick maximum points on their trip to meet Lady Doves in Masindi.
The other match has the fourth-placed Uganda Christian University (UCU) Lady Cardinals hosting third-placed UMHS in Mukono.
Hasifah Nassuna (12) is chasing Fazila Ikwaput (14)for the top scorer’s gong.