Uganda Cranes qualified for the quarterfinals in the African Nations Championship (CHAN) for the first time after their draw against South Africa in a dramatic comeback. Head Coach Morley Byekwaso attributed the team’s success to the unwavering belief from the start.
‘Yes, we believed we could do it, and finally, we are here,’ he said. ‘When we lost our first game at the start of the tournament, it was hurtful, but we kept believing and pushing, and here we are. As I always say, there’s always a reason for something. We have been leading the table, and here we are, past the group stage, waiting for our next opponent.’
Coach Byekwaso also commented on his players’ performance: ‘We played Allan Okello in a different position than what he played in the first game against Algeria because we know he is more productive in that role. Football is football; sometimes it takes some time to pick up, but he is our playmaker. We believe in him, and he has done well. We believe our league is not as strong as the leagues of other teams we are playing against, so there are things that drain us, especially when we are under pressure. But the players have to know how to cope with situations when they are leading. We are working on it, and we believe we will get there with time.’
Regarding the incident of penalty takers on the team, Coach Morley said: ‘The team has players who take penalties, but the game was so tense. Confidence was everything, which is why we saw them exchanging the ball with the captain. Yes, that’s why we selected him to be the captain – he had the heart and belief to take that penalty decider, and yes, he made it.’
Morley believes they now have to shift their focus to another target in the tournament: ‘Our first target was to get out of the group for the first time ever, but now the target has changed. We have another game on Saturday, so after the excitement, we are going back to training with new words, new motivation, and a new approach. We need to do well even in our next game, so the excitement is only for a certain period. We have to continue preparing for other games.’
Concerning yellow cards, Morley says: ‘That’s just how football is. We missed Joel Serunjoji in today’s game, but we got the point we wanted. We may not have control over yellow cards, but we must be prepared for them. We are going to miss Hillary Mukundane, who is one of our good defenders, but I believe we have someone who will play in his position because I trust all the boys.’
The Uganda Cranes will play either Senegal, Sudan, or Congo in their next game on Saturday.
Match highlights
