After sweeping through the opening two Pool D games of the 2015 Netball World Cup, the Uganda She Cranes succumbed to Wales in the last group game on Monday.
The loss to Wales meant the She Cranes finished second in the group and will therefore join Pool A winners New Zealand, Pool B runners up Jamaica and Pool C winners Malawi where they will face off in a round-robin format to determine the Top 2 who will make the semifinals.
For the fans, it’s a little disheartening that Uganda lost, but here is why you should be upbeat about the loss;
The first two wins against Zambia and Fiji guaranteed Uganda She Cranes a spot in the top eight teams on the route to World Cup glory. In fact, Uganda will be the only team in the last eight that is ranked outside the Top 8 in Netball.
She Cranes’ Wing Defender Lillian Ajio shields the ball from Wales’ Goal Attack Bethan Dyke
The loss helped the She Cranes avoid facing the tournament host, favourites and top ranked Australia. Naturally, you wouldn’t fancy facing a tournament host let alone being the defending champion and all time record winners of the World Cup.
The She Cranes have also avoided facing netball giants England who are also tagged as favourites for the tournament.
Despite having a lot of experience at this level Jamaica is not far away from Uganda much as they are a big name in the sport having finished runners up on three occasions.
In Malawi, the She Cranes have a familiar opponent. Having played with the Malawians in the World Cup build up tournament at the Diamond Challenge in June, the Ugandans will know how to go about their opponents having lost to Malawi back then.
The Jamaicans along with tournament heavy weights New Zealand will be Uganda’s toughest opponents as they search for a place in the last four.
Pool E
New Zealand
Jamaica
Malawi
Uganda
Pool F
Australia
England
South Africa
Wales
