I have what it takes to win tourney-Basena
Jul 26, 2008
TANZANIA has been a good hunting ground for Ugandan teams on two previous occasions and this has given URA the feeling that they can lift the the CECAFA Club Championship tomorrow.
By Kato Kawuma
2008 CECAFA CLUBS TOURNEY
In Dar-Es-Salaam, Tanzania
Semi-final result
Tusker 1 Yanga 0
Sunday
Losers’ match, 1.45pm
CECAFA Final, 3.30pm
URA FC v Tusker
TANZANIA has been a good hunting ground for Ugandan teams on two previous occasions and this has given URA the feeling that they can lift the the CECAFA Club Championship tomorrow.
Coach Moses Basena will also be out to silence his critics who regard him as a mediocre coach with an obsession for defensive approaches to matches.
URA,who claimed their place in the final after burying favourites Simba of Tanzania 1-0 in an energy-sapping semi-final on Thursday, will engage Kenyan outfit Tusker.
Simon Mburu’s 53rd minute effort helped Tusker eliminate Yanga in Friday’s semi-final.
If Basena successfully accomplishes the task ahead of him tomorrow, he will go down in history as the second Ugandan coach to have won this cup on foreign soil, the first being Sam Timbe who triumphed with SC Villa and Police FC in Tanzania. Timbe is also the only coach to have lifted the cup with two different clubs in consecutive years. This was in 2005 and 2006.
URA were beaten finalists last year in Kigali but Basena says he can surpass his predecessor’s mark.
“Many people expect us to take the cup and we have to perform to their expectations. The team is young but experienced and with God’s help, we might return home with the trophy,†Basena said on Friday at the Valley View Hotel, Kariakoo Town in Dar es Salaam where they are camped.
Basena, who abandoned his coaching job at KCC FC last January, added that his team has a number of experienced players who cannot be un-nerved by the tension associated with a cup final.
He singled out Tony Mawejje and Dan Wagaluka who lifted this cup with Police and Villa respectively. He also boasts of Uganda internationals Joseph Owino, Musa Doka, skipper Johnson Bagoole, goalkeeper Abel Dhaira and U-23 national star David Kyobe.
In Thursday’s semi-final Eric Obua scored on 111 minutes in extra time off Martin Muwanga’s cross as the Ugandans beat Simba but it was Dhaira who emerged the hero of the day with a penalty save from Nigerian striker Emeh Ichekuchwu in the last minute.
URA has the meanest defence which has let in only two goals in the four matches played so far and goalkeeper Dhaira has won the hearts of Dar es Salaam fans because of his acrobatic saves and ball juggling skills.
“I am happy that the team's concentration is now high because we no longer concede goals as it was in group matches,†Basena added.
2008 CECAFA CLUBS TOURNEY
In Dar-Es-Salaam, Tanzania
Semi-final result
Tusker 1 Yanga 0
Sunday
Losers’ match, 1.45pm
CECAFA Final, 3.30pm
URA FC v Tusker
TANZANIA has been a good hunting ground for Ugandan teams on two previous occasions and this has given URA the feeling that they can lift the the CECAFA Club Championship tomorrow.
Coach Moses Basena will also be out to silence his critics who regard him as a mediocre coach with an obsession for defensive approaches to matches.
URA,who claimed their place in the final after burying favourites Simba of Tanzania 1-0 in an energy-sapping semi-final on Thursday, will engage Kenyan outfit Tusker.
Simon Mburu’s 53rd minute effort helped Tusker eliminate Yanga in Friday’s semi-final.
If Basena successfully accomplishes the task ahead of him tomorrow, he will go down in history as the second Ugandan coach to have won this cup on foreign soil, the first being Sam Timbe who triumphed with SC Villa and Police FC in Tanzania. Timbe is also the only coach to have lifted the cup with two different clubs in consecutive years. This was in 2005 and 2006.
URA were beaten finalists last year in Kigali but Basena says he can surpass his predecessor’s mark.
“Many people expect us to take the cup and we have to perform to their expectations. The team is young but experienced and with God’s help, we might return home with the trophy,†Basena said on Friday at the Valley View Hotel, Kariakoo Town in Dar es Salaam where they are camped.
Basena, who abandoned his coaching job at KCC FC last January, added that his team has a number of experienced players who cannot be un-nerved by the tension associated with a cup final.
He singled out Tony Mawejje and Dan Wagaluka who lifted this cup with Police and Villa respectively. He also boasts of Uganda internationals Joseph Owino, Musa Doka, skipper Johnson Bagoole, goalkeeper Abel Dhaira and U-23 national star David Kyobe.
In Thursday’s semi-final Eric Obua scored on 111 minutes in extra time off Martin Muwanga’s cross as the Ugandans beat Simba but it was Dhaira who emerged the hero of the day with a penalty save from Nigerian striker Emeh Ichekuchwu in the last minute.
URA has the meanest defence which has let in only two goals in the four matches played so far and goalkeeper Dhaira has won the hearts of Dar es Salaam fans because of his acrobatic saves and ball juggling skills.
“I am happy that the team's concentration is now high because we no longer concede goals as it was in group matches,†Basena added.