Uganda, Tanzania happy with preparatory tourney

Winifrida Gerald’s dramatic 42nd rebound from a corner was enough to earn Tanzania a 1-0 win over Uganda and the ultimate trophy as the inaugural Cecafa U-18 Women Championship climaxed last Friday at the Azam Complex in Dar-es-Salaam.

The match was played in front of a loud and partisan home crowd that kept Uganda quiet both on pitch and in the stands.

But both sides’ coaches Bakari Shime (Tanzania) and Ayub Khalifah were happy that their players took the two week assignment seriously as it is part of the preparations for the U-17 and U-20 World Cup qualifiers that come in February 2024 and October 2023 respectively. The Cecafa tourney came in handy because all countries involved have key players from previous years that have turned either 18 or 21 and will not be eligible for the respective youth teams.

For the U-17s, both Khalifah and Shime’s sides have a bye into the second round. Uganda face Cameroon while Tanzania meet Zambia. These rivals could then cross paths in the third and penultimate round if they both edge their second round bouts.

For the U-20s, Tanzania take on Djibouti while Uganda takes on Mozambique in two-legged affairs between October 6 and 15. But here, the neighbouring countries can only meet if they make it to the final and fifth qualification round in March 2024.

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“We played a very difficult match against Tanzania but the quality of football has been good and I believe that this squad will have players in the U-20 team,” Khalifah, who like Shime will lead his country’s U-20s, said in the aftermath of the loss.

Khalifah’s words were echoed by his captain Phionah Nabulime who thinks that many of her teammates have given a good account of themselves despite not having Shakira Nyinagahirwa, Hadijah Nandago and Catherine Nagadya – three players that the team had initially been built around before Kampala Queens signed them for what many deem as the more important assignment in the Caf Women’s Champions League zonal qualifiers that start Saturday at MTN Omondi Stadium and Fufa Technical Centre, Njeru.

Shime, on the other hand, has had the chance of taking his U-17s to the World Cup before (2022) but insists they will need more preparatory matches.

“I want to thank my players for winning all the four matches. We need more matches like these because they will help us build solid teams for the upcoming qualifiers,” Shime said.

CECAFA U-18 WOMEN CHAMPIONSHIP

RESULTS

Zanzibar 0-4 Burundi

Tanzania 0-1 Uganda

STANDINGS

Tanzania         4          4          0          0          7          0          12

Uganda            4          4          0          1          11        1          9

Ethiopia          4          2          0          2          8          4          6

Burundi           4          0          0          4          4          12        3

Zanzibar          4          0          0          4          1          14        0