Can Kawempe Go Higher?

The 2021 participants, PVP Buyenzi, from Burundi lay in weight this afternoon at Abebe Bikila Stadium in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

In 2021, Buyenzi met Uganda’s representatives Lady Doves and lost 3-0 at the inaugural edition of the competition. But the next time a Ugandan side, Kampala Queens (KQ) met a Burundian team, Buja Queens last year, they lost 2-1.

Kawempe are on a test. After over 20 years of investing in women’s football and a record five topflight titles, this level feels like a birthright for Kawempe.

However, it has been a longtime coming. When Kawempe won its first four titles between 2015 and 2018, the regional and continental club competition did not exist.

Reconstruction

It was started in 2021. And at that time, Kawempe were in the thick of paying for their decision to let many rising and established stars go – some to their rivals.

The years between 2021 and 2024, Kawempe were actually rebuilding. So this feels like a test of structures too. There will certainly be questions to answer on pitch too.

The decision to turn Hadijah Babirye into a defender after the departure of Shakira Nankwanga robs the side of a budding attacker.

Sumaya Nabuto – a student at the school but previously playing club football with Isra Academy – was added to bolster the attack. She will share two of the available three forward roles with Mary Kabaculezi, Rebecca Nakato, Allen Nassazi and Shadia Nabirye.

Hadijah Nandago and Agnes Nabukenya will split minutes in the other role and will both shoulder the burden of finding goals for the side. As one of them drops to midfield, the other joins the attack.

Application over ability

In their championship-winning season, Kawempe addressed a long-standing problem of profligacy in front of goal but this championship will actually check the seriousness of their performance in front of goal even more.

Nandago had the chance to test herself in this tournament when she was on loan at KQ last year but was not handed much responsibility. Her counterpart and right back Samalie Nakacwa had more playing time so she will most likely be the one with less jitters.

“This is going to be a different competition to what we are used to but do not worry, we have the ability to do the job,” Nakacwa told her teammates when given the opportunity to address them at their flagoff ceremony on Tuesday.

Beyond that, Kawempe are littered with exposed players. Goalkeeper Juliet Adeke is in and out of the national team set up.

Captain Phionah Nabulime, midfielders Krusum Namutebi, Nandago and Nabukenya have represented the senior and U-20 teams while Nabuto and Nabirye have represented the U-17 national team at continental level.

Therefore Kawempe has little to convince us about motivation or the ability of the players but their application at a higher level. Can they be the sum of their parts? Or simply put, can Kawempe Go Higher?

Caf Women’s Champions League

Cecafa Qualifiers – Ethiopia (August 17 – September 4)

Stadiums: Addis Ababa, Abebe Bikila

Group A: Central Bank Ethiopia, Kenya Police Bullets, Yei Joint Stars (South Sudan), Warriors Queens (Zanzibar), Rayon Sports (Rwanda)

Group B: Simba Queens (Tanzania), Kawempe Muslim (Uganda), PVP Buyenzi (Burundi), FAD Djibouti

Fixtures

Sunday: Kawempe vs. PVP Buyenzi (Burundi) – Abebe Bikila, 1pm

Simba Queens (Tanzania) vs. FAD Djibouti, 4pm

Tuesday: Kawempe vs. Simba Queens – Abebe Bikila, 1pm

Thursday: Kawempe vs. FAD Djibouti – Addis Ababa, 3pm