Uganda thrash Tanzania 4-1 to lift 2020 CECAFA U-20 title

2020 CECAFA U-20 CHAMPIONSHIP

Final: Uganda 4 Tanzania 1

Third place: Kenya 1 South Sudan 2

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ARUSHA - Uganda's under-20 national football side, The Hippos, produced a scintillating, title-winning performance to beat hosts Tanzania in Arusha and lift the 2020 CECAFA U-20 championship on Wednesday.

Richard Basangwa saw his 12th-minute opener cancelled out by Abdul Hamisi Suleiman's composed penalty in an entertaining, physical encounter at the half-hour mark to bring the contest back on level terms.

After Steven Sserwada restored Uganda's lead before the break, Hippos' leading goalscorer Ivan Bogere missed a glorious opportunity to improve Morley Byekwaso's side's first half lead when he was denied by the woodwork from the spot in stoppage time after Isma Mugulusi was brought down inside the box.

That missed penalty may have handed the Ngorongoro Heroes a lifeline, but their sense of desperation was compounded by the goal-thirsty visitors' insatiable mood after the break.

Bogere returned after the interval to make amends for this opening half profligacy with a wonder goal - his tournament-leading fifth - to put The Hippos firmly in charge.

Aziz Kayondo then caught substitute home keeper Razak Shekimweri - who replaced Zuberi Masudi - off his line with an embarrassing long-range goal to complete the rout and apply the gloss to a memorable production away from the comforts of home for the Ugandan lads.

Byekwaso's charges will also relish a timely measure of revenge against the Tanzanians, who knocked them out at the quarter-final stage when Uganda hosted the competition last year.

$miling back home

The CECAFA championship acted as the qualification tournament for the region for next year's AFCON U-20, and having fallen short in the previous campaign, The Hippos were determined to secure one of the two slots preserved for this zone.

After marching out of the group stage and brushing aside Kenya in the last-four, Uganda inevitably established a mouthwatering final berth with the tournament's best team thus far. The Tanzanians won all their three games en route to the final and, carrying the hosts tag, arrived for the grand finale as the favourites.

But they were coming up against a giant of the region, Uganda, who underlined their credentials as early as the 12th minute when Basangwa brushed home Najib Yiga's free-kick just outside the Tanzanian box to put Byekwaso's side in front.

Yiga came close to scoring his second goal of the campaign after linking up well with Bogere, but Tanzanian keeper Zuberi Masudi dashed out in time to snuff out the danger.

Sensing danger, the Ngorongoro Heroes stepped up their attacking strategy by injecting a dollop of lethal nous in their penetration, which paid off, causing the Ugandan back to cave in and concede a penalty.

Suleiman stepped up for the task at hand and made no mistake, beating Jack Komakech to restore parity at the Black Rhino Academy in Karatu and record what would end up being his joint-leading fifth goal of the tournament.

Sserwada's delicious strike before half time was enough to disturb the wheels of the Tanzanian side, and although they desperately hang on after Bogere's missed penalty, their wheels would go on to fly off in an implosive second half that reduced the hosts to licking open wounds.

Meanwhile, Uganda's football governing body (FUFA) president Moses Magogo was a keen high-profile spectator at Black Rhino Academy on Wednesday, and he will have been pleased with the performance of his side.

In the buildup to the final, he promised that each player would get $700 (sh2.6m) for U-20 AFCON qualification and an extra $300 (sh1.1m) each if they win the CECAFA tournament.

Now that the lads have achieved just that, they know they will each be $1000 (sh3.7m) richer for a job well done.

Earlier in the day, South Sudan beat Kenya for third place with a 2-1 win.

Philip Biajo scored two minutes into the game, before Nicholas Ochieng restored parity in the 10th minute. Nelson Elia scored the winner five minutes before the break to seal the spot.

The debutants

Uganda and Tanzania came into Wednesday's final having already made the cut for next year's Africa U-20 Cup of Nations.

The two CECAFA (Central-East Zone) representatives will be making their debut at the biennial international youth championship, whose 16th edition will be hosted by the northwest African nation of Mauritania.

The tournament will get under way on February 14 and end on March 4, 2021. Holders Mali will not defend their title after they failed to make it past the group stage in the qualifiers.

This will be the first edition in AFCON U-20 competition to have expanded to 12 teams instead of eight.

And for debutants Uganda, there will be a lot at stake. The top four teams at the end of the tournament will qualify for the 2021 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Indonesia as the continental (CAF) representatives.

Morley Byekwaso's side will surely fancy writing more history here.

Meanwhile, Tanzania ended this year's CECAFA championship as the highest-scoring side after netting 16 goals and conceding six. Uganda were second-best, with 13 goals for and three against. It means the two sides have ended the tournament with an identical goal difference of +10.

The road to the final

The CECAFA qualification tournament for next year's U-20 AFCON finals was initially scheduled to be hosted by Sudan. Later, plans changed and it was shifted and held in Tanzania. Rwanda and Eritrea withdrew from the competition.

Uganda, the previous hosts knocked out by eventual winners Tanzania at the quarterfinal stage, this time around opened their campaign with a drab goalless draw against South Sudan.

The Hippos discovered their scoring boots with a comprehensive 6-1 victory over Burundi to advance to the semifinals, where they knocked out last year's finalists Kenya 3-1 to book a slot in the final.

In constrast, hosts Tanzania hit the ground running with a loud title-defence alert to their opponents when they beat Djibouti 6-1 in their opening match.

And the Ngorongoro  Heroes did not stop at that. They advanced to the last-four with an even bolder statement in the form of a routine 8-1 thumping of Somalia, before facing their sternest test thus far.

In the semi-final, stubborn South Sudan did not allow Tanzania to bully them in front of goal like the sides before them, restricting the hosts to seeing the back of their net only once, which though was enough to see them progress to the final.

In the end, it was Uganda that rose to the very top and remain perched on the dizzying echelon of the tournament.