Uganda/Guinea: Cranes Will Prevail Over Guinea

Fred Kaweesi

28 May 2011

WITH less than a week to Cranes’ Nations Cup qualifier against Guinea Bissau and no more than four of the team’s 18 foreign-based players in the country, any manager would feel concerned over his team’s prospects.

But surprisingly it’s all different with Cranes boss Bobby Williamson.

The Scot insists that the Cranes, who will make next weekend’s engagement against the West Africans on the back of just a couple of days of intensive training and without a build-up behind them, will still prove good enough for maximum points in their Group J qualifier.

“We will have a few days for training but this problem also cuts across the entire continent. No country will have its entire team in training until mid-next week. So it is a level playing field,” Williamson stated yesterday.

Although Cranes are expected to regroup at Namboole Stadium today, Williamson will only have his complete first team available after Kenya-based Mudde Musa joins the rest on Wednesday.

Nestroy Kizito, Vincent Kayizzi and Tony Mawejje will have joined the previous day.

It then means Williamson will have two days to look at his players’ fitness levels and at the same time unearth the right candidate that will partner Andrew Mwesigwa at the heart of defence in the absence of suspended captain Ibrahim Sekagya.

“For the first few days, we will work on player fitness before addressing a few issues that we got wrong in the game away in Bissau,” he added.

Mwesigwa, midfielder Joseph Kabagambe, defender Isaac Isinde, striker Geoffrey Massa and goalkeeper Denis Onyango are expected in the country today.

June 4

Uganda v Guinea Bissau

Fees: Sh15,000 and 30,000

AllAfrica – All the Time