Wednesday, May 13
•Egypt Vs Ethiopia
•Ivory Coast Vs Cameroon
•Uganda Vs DR Congo – 7pm
•Morocco Vs Tunisia
Uganda U17 boys’ national team, the Uganda Cubs, begin their AFCON U17 campaign with a clash against DR Congo in Morocco.
Drawn in a tough group that also has Cameroon and Ivory Coast, the Cubs will be aiming to progress beyond the group stage for the first time.
The top two teams from each group will advance to the quarter-finals and secure qualification for the FIFA U-17 World Cup, while two additional teams will qualify through playoffs.
The Cubs have been camping in Casablanca, where they played two international friendlies as part of their preparations, beating Mozambique 3-1 and Mali 1-0.
“It’s been long overdue, and our preparations have gone very well, with training sessions in Kampala and Njeru before flying here. We have seen a lot of improvement,” said head coach Laryea Kingstone.
“The warm-up games have been very important and helped us a lot. Mozambique had a different style of play which gave us challenges, but the boys followed the game plan well and executed it perfectly.
“Against Mali, it was tougher, but the boys still managed to perform very well.”
The Cubs qualified for the tournament after finishing runners-up in the CECAFA qualifier earlier.
Last year, under Brian Ssenyondo, the Cubs needed the playoffs to secure qualification for their maiden FIFA U-17 World Cup appearance. This time, they will be hoping for an even better campaign.
Kingstone added: “The first game is always important. DR Congo have also prepared well like us, and we are looking forward to putting in a good performance. The results will follow. We shall take it one game at a time.”
Captain Owen Mukisa and forward Thomas Ogema are among the key players to watch, while Adrian Mukwanga and John Brian Owino return to the continental showpiece.
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