STORY BY Geoffrey Mugabi
The defending champions of the U20 CECAFA TotalEnergies AFCON Zonal Qualifiers, the Uganda Hippos, have started their title defense with an emphatic 3-0 victory over Ethiopia on Monday evening.
In the game played at Azam Complex Stadium in Tanzania, Godfrey Sekibengo, Swabir Mpasa and John Innocent Kisolo scored a goal each to hand Uganda Hippos a convincing win.
URA midfielder Godfrey Sekibengo netted the opener in the 24th minute with a spectacular volley to put Uganda Hippos in the lead.
An Ethiopian defender cleared the ball with a header, but it didn’t go far, as Sekibengo volleyed it into the far-right bottom corner from the edge of the box.
Two minutes later, Ethiopia attempted to equalize, but the goal was ruled out by the assistant referee due to offside. Shortly after, Allan Oyirwoth’s volley hit the post, denying him the chance to double the lead.
Few minutes later, Uganda Hippos goalkeeper Abdu Magada pulled an excellent save after miscommunication in his defense.
In a blink of an eye, striker John Paul Dembe’s powerful shot was saved by the Ethiopian custodian Abyu Ayele in a similar fashion.
However, before the break, Uganda doubled the lead through Swabir Mpasa’s volley off Allan Oyirowth’s header inside the box.
In the second half, there were no clear chances created until the 90th minute, when substitute John Innocent Kisolo made it 3-0 for Uganda Hippos.
The midfielder scored from a powerful long range strike that left the goalkeeper with no chance, sealing the victory for Uganda.
Uganda will now shift focus on their next game against Burundi who also started with a victory earlier today beating South Sudan 1-0. The game will be played on Wednesday, 9th October 2024 at KMC stadium.
It should be noted that the top two teams from each group will qualify for the tournament’s semi-finals, and both finalists will secure a spot in the U20 AFCON final tournament.
