Wananchi men, women qualify for Uganda Cup finals

Wananchi Hockey Club's men's team and their women's counterparts have cleared their chances of lifting the national hockey Uganda Cup after both qualified for the finals.

After a 4-4 draw in the first leg, Wananchi men returned strongly to win the second leg 3-2 on Saturday, securing a 7-6 aggregate victory.

They will now face Rockets, a club that was formerly part of the Wananchi setup, in the final as the latter targets its maiden Uganda Cup title.

Rockets booked their place in the final after completing a 9-1 aggregate demolition of HC Originals. This followed their emphatic 5-0 first-leg victory at Lugogo a week earlier, before sealing a 4-1 win in the return leg on Sunday.

Rockets coach Martin Okello has praised his players for their consistent progress, which has propelled them to their first-ever Uganda Cup final.

In the women's category, the final will be an all-Wananchi affair, pitting 2024 champions HDF against their mother club, Wananchi.

HDF eliminated Kampala Swans, the 2023, 2024 and 2025 champions, after recovering from a 2-1 first-leg defeat to win the return leg 3-2 at Lugogo on Sunday. The tie was subsequently decided by a penalty shootout, which HDF won 4-3.

Wananchi, meanwhile, stormed into the women's final after thrashing Weatherhead 14-1 on aggregate across the two semifinal legs.

Uganda Hockey Association (UHA) assistant general secretary Joshua Masawi has confirmed that the final will be played on December 13, following a postponement from November 29 due to the unavailability of the playing ground.

Hockey Uganda Cup semifinal results

Men – First Leg

Originals 0 Rockets 5

Wananchi 4 Weatherhead 4

Men – Second Leg

Rockets 4 Originals 4

Weatherhead 2 Wananchi 3

Women – First Leg

Wananchi 5 Weatherhead 1

Kampala 2 HDF 1

Women – Second Leg

Weatherhead 0 Wananchi 9

HDF 3 (4) Kampala 2 (3)