Crested Cranes aim to test Djibouti progress
Looking To Deliver. Nabweteme (R) had a cameo off the bench against Rwanda she will be looking to make her shift count today when the Crested Cranes exchange pleasantries with Djibouti in Njeru. PHOTO | JOHN BATANUDDE
Uganda’s last and only meeting with Djibouti ended in a 13-0 triumph for the former at the 2019 Cecafa Women Championship in Tanzania.
Djibouti conceded 33 goals in that tournament. But after their 3-0 loss to Burundi in the opener of the 2022 edition at Fufa Technical Centre, Njeru their assistant coach Drag Abdellai believes the days of cricket scores are over.
Gradual improvements
“We lacked the experience in the beginning but we are making gradual improvements,” he said of the game where they managed not to collapse defensively despite conceding twice in four minutes just before earning a red card in the 40th minute.
“We are not just playing defensively. Before the red card, we tried to balance both aspects of the game and we shall look at other players to help us do the same against Uganda,” Abdellai said.
Uganda’s coach George Lutalo will be thinking ‘if it is not broken, do not fix it.’
But it is hard to see him resisting the temptation to make changes ahead of one of the tournament minnows.
He has eight attackers in his 23-man camp but can only use 20 players. Against Rwanda, he started four; captain Hasifah Nassuna in an attacking midfield duo, brace scorer Fazila Ikwaput, Natasha Shirazi and Margaret Kunihira.
He later brought on Sandra Nabweteme and Lillian Mutuuzo leaving Zainah Nandede and Juliet Nalukenge on the bench.
Gloves untested
The two will surely get minutes today but goalkeepers; Daphine Nyayenga and Juliet Adeke might as well start to worry for their Africa Women Cup of Nations (Awcon) slots if they do not get minutes today.
Five of Nalukenge’s six Crested Cranes goals are against Djibouti while Ikwaput and Nassuna also bagged hat-tricks against them in 2019.
The other two goals were scored by the currently Kazakhstan-based Fauzia Najjemba and out of favour Amina Nababi.
Asking Nassuna on whether their comfortable 2-0 display over Rwanda meant they would blow away Djibouti, the creative skipper humbly answered: “There is work to do. Why would they come here for that (heavy loss)?”
