Vipers 18-point triumph exposes flaws of the rest
Hip-hip hurray! Vipers boss Lawrence Mulindwa (at back) leads the Venoms in celebrations on Saturday. PHOTO/EDDIE CHICCO
What you need to know:
- You would expect a club that clinched the league title with four matches to spare to give a run about to fringe players, not Oliveira
Brazilian gaffer Roberto Oliveira is indeed a man on a mission. Up to the last game of the StarTimes Uganda Premier League, he didn’t alter his best eleven players, save when forced by injuries.
You would expect a club that clinched the league title with four matches to spare to give a run about to fringe players, not Oliveira.
He means business and he even celebrated Vipers fifth goal in the 5-0 drubbing of relegated Police on Saturday at the St Mary’s Stadium in Kitende like it was a crucial winner.
He still demanded more from Milton Karisa (brace), Yunus Sentamu and Bobosi Byaruhanga (brace) even when they were flogging a dead horse.
That unforgiving and competitive stance has accorded Vipers a record shattering 74 points from 30 matches, the same tally the Venoms last managed in 2010 while still under the Bunamwaya flag name.
Oliveira’s Vipers have only lost to Arua Hill (at the Barifa Stadium) and URA (at Kitende) , raking 23 victories and five losses.
Whilst at it, they established an 18-point gap difference over second-placed KCCA to cement their superiority this campaign.
Inspired by the lethal attacking trio of Caesar Manzoki (18 goals), Sentamu (13) and Karisa (eight), the five-time league kings scored the most number of goals in the season (69) and only URA (57 goals) came close.
With an impregnable defence marshalled by skipper Halid Lwaliwa and Livingston Mulondo, Vipers leaked in the least number of goals 19, while KCCA came second with 21 goals conceded.
There was a moment the table leadership operated in a seesaw mode, with Vipers and KCCA taking turns to lead but once Oliveira’s charges reached the final bend, the gap bulged and they were out of sight.
Morley Byekwaso’s KCCA, that has lost the last two league matches, have struggled for consistency, identity and command the entire season and imploded every time they were put under immense pressure.
URA, like deposed holders Express, never recovered from the superfluous managerial changes and reported dressing room disharmony midway the season.
Express finished sixth on the log while Sam Timbe’s URA were third with 55 points from 30 matches.
Villa live to die another day.
The season postmortem report will show SC Villa administrators the hefty work on their hands to get the record league winners back on the table of men.
The Jogoos flirted with the relegation talk throughout the season and hadn’t relegated Police, Tooro United and Mbarara City been worse off, Petros Koukouras’ boys would have feared for the worst.
Bul’s 1-0 defeat over the weekend at Bugembe was Villa’s 12th loss in a tension filled season they have won a paltry eight matches.
Villa managed to net 27 times and conceded 32 goals finishing 12th on the table with 33 points.Simply put, it was a close shave moment for the Blues.
UPL 2021/22 final standings
2021/22 final table standings
Team P W D L F A Pts
C.Vipers 30 23 5 2 69 19 74
2.KCCA 30 15 11 4 41 21 56
3.URA 30 15 10 5 57 27 55
4.BUL 30 14 10 6 54 32 52
5.Arua Hill 30 14 10 6 38 27 52
6.Express 30 11 13 6 31 25 46
7.Wakiso Giants 30 12 3 15 38 47 39
8.Gaddafi 30 9 10 11 33 36 37
9.Onduparaka 30 10 9 11 32 37 37
10.UPDF 30 9 10 11 33 42 37
11.Bright Stars 30 9 9 12 26 34 36
12.SC Villa 30 8 10 12 27 32 33
13.Busoga United 30 9 5 16 26 45 32
14.Police 30 6 10 14 32 46 28
15.Mbarara City 30 6 7 17 28 36 25
16.Tooro United 30 2 4 24 20 81 10
Uganda Premier League
Matchday 30 results
Vipers 5-0 Police
KCCA 0-1 Wakiso Giants
Arua Hill 1 -0 Express
UPDF 1 -2 Onduparaka
Bul 1 -0 SC Villa
Bright Stars 2-0 Mbarara City
Tooro United 0-7 URA
Busoga United 1 -2 Gaddafi
