Nandede embraces competition at Kampala Queens and beyond

Zainah Nandede has been playing football for just four years but is one of the recognizable talents in the women’s game.
The Kampala Queens (KQ) winger has quickly progressed from schools football in 2018 to competing in all national league tiers and representing all national teams.
“I started playing in 2018 when coach Jovan Magino, currently coaching Kataka She, introduced women’s football to Nkoma Secondary School,” Nandede, who was playing netball and volleyball, says.

She burst onto the national scene as a high flying winger during the U-17 Women Cecafa Championships at Fufa Technical Centre, Njeru, in December 2019.
Coach Ayub Khalifa, who spotted her during Airtel Rising Stars and Uganda Muslim Education Association (Umea) games, would introduce her late to batter tired opponents with pace.

Khalifa initially called her to camp prior to the September 2019 Cosafa U-17 Women’s Championships in Mauritius but dropped her ahead of travel.
“He prepares us well for it (the drop). There is never segregation in camp between those travelling and not. We usually have a meeting the day before travel where he explains his decisions,” Nandede says.
After Cecafa U-17, Nandede was called to the senior team, the Crested Cranes, ahead of the Cecafa Women Championships in Tanzania, where she played with her idol Hasifah Nassuna.

“First, you are happy to be part of the youth teams but when you graduate to the senior team, there is a tinge of pride because you are going to play with some big names.
“When I was in Mbale, Nassuna was one of the players I admired most. Fortunately, I have been her teammate and opponent a couple of times,” Nandede adds.
One meeting against Nassuna that Nandede will keep close to heart is her new club KQ’s 2-1 win over UCU Lady Cardinals in the Fufa Women Super League (FWSL) in which the winger scored a late winner.

No fear
Way before Nandede joined KQ, she returned from Tanzania to represent Mbale-based Kataka She in the regional league for the season 2019/20.
She was also part of the U-17 team that played in the World Cup qualifiers. Unfortunately, witwh just a match against Cameroon to determine who would represent Africa at the Cup in India and the league halfway, Covid-19 restrictions on travel and sport started to bite.
Fortunately for Nandede, when the lockdowns eased, Fufa had promoted Kataka to the second tier – Fufa Women Elite League – that was played in shortened version in Njeru last year.

Kataka did not progress to the FWSL “but we did not fall back to the regionals either,” Nandede, who was one of the televised tournament’s stars alongside her free scoring teammate Esther Namataka, adds.
“Njeru gave me exposure against teams said to be better than us. I had played with some opponents on the national team, so I played without fear.”
Khalifa also decided to promote the entire U-17 team he had worked with to U-20 ranks when handed another World Cup assignment.

Nandede was still on the fringes but settled better and grabbed her opportunity at the 2021 Cecafa U-19 tourney organised in earnest to aid Uganda’s preparation for qualifiers. Her trickery and pace forced Khalifa’s hand later in the tournament – in which he could not use then Cyprus-bound striker Juliet Nalukenge – to make space for her in the starting 11.

“Settling in depends on how you conducts yourself among others and not what club or level of league you play in. We all believed that we were on the team on merit so we treated each other like equals and when the chance came, I went hard,” Nandede shares.
Tough results
Cecafa U-20 ended in dismay as Ethiopia came from 2-0 down and a red card to their coach to beat Uganda 3-2 and win the round robin tourney in a game that continues to defy explanation for everyone involved.

The World Cup qualifiers were ended in even more deplorable manner by Ghana, who won 2-1 in Kitende and 5-0 in Cape Coast.
“We are not poor players but there is little you can do to an experienced side that has always been qualifying. When they scored the first, we felt we would fight. The second made me think we needed to get one back quickly.
“Then the third went it and I started thinking of coming out of the game with the satisfaction that I had done my bit as an individual.

“Such results hurt because if we had qualified, life would change for some of us – at least the coaches always told us that you cannot stay the same after qualifying for a World Cup.
“Maybe professional stints would come calling. We all want to go professional and such tournaments give us the opportunity to showcase our talent.”

Joining KQ
Nandede now has an opportunity to fight for the same at KQ, a club she signed for just before Uganda played Ghana in January.
“As a player you can tell that you will find peace and playing time in a certain team. People kept saying KQ had many forwards and there would be competition for places but I’ve never feared competition,” she says.
“On getting here, yes, we had many forwards but as a player you must be willing to be versatile and adapt to new positions. I am playing now but if I am required to switch position, I will.” 

Nandede joined with her U-17 and U-20 teammates Shamirah Nalugya and Margaret Kunihira. Lillian Mutuuzo was already there.
KQ have 19 points from 10 games and are six points behind She Corporate, who have played 11 games. Also in the title mix are UCU with 17 points and Uganda Martyrs High School Lubaga, with 19 too.

“The team is doing fine and the trophy is still achievable but I think we must win all our remaining games. However, as an individual, I want to do better but everything comes from God,” says Nandede, who has scored twice and assisted once this season.

Zainah Nandede at a glance
Born:     October 15, 2003
Parents:     Zainah Kafuuko and Hakim         Wasukira
Clubs:    Kataka She (2019-22)
    KQ (2022 - )
National:    U-17: Cecafa 2019,             2020 World Cup Qualifiers
    U-20: Cecafa 2021, 2022             World Cup Qualifiers
Senior:     Cecafa 2019
Education background
North Road P/S, Mbale
2015: Ssingo SS, Mityana (S1)
2016-2018: Nkoma SS, Mbale (S2-S4)
2019-2020: Amus College, Bukedea
*Expects to join Mubs in June to pursue a degree in Procurement and Logistics
[email protected]