The year 2021 will be one Uganda Cranes will want to forget as soon as they jump into the New Year after failures in all competitions and also retirement of key players including the skipper, Denis Onyango.
But it was one for the Hippos to rejoice just like Express FC and Bobosi Byaruhanga.
Ismael Kiyonga takes a look at how 2021 has unfolded.
Hippos make history
Without doubt, the best story in Ugandan football not only for 2021 but for many more past years.
The Hippos, Uganda’s U-20 side reached the finals of the Afcon youth competition losing to Ghana 2-0 in the finals.
It was a milestone no national football team had achieved since the Uganda Cranes in 1972, ironically, losing to the same side in the finals.
The achievement in Mauritania gave the Hippos a ticket to the World Cup but the Covid19 pandemic denied the boys an opportunity to represent at the world’s biggest stage.
Derrick Kakooza (five goals) top scored while Uganda had the highest number of players in the tournament XI including Aziz Kayondo and Morley Byekwaso voted coach of the tournament.
Cranes worst year – Afcon, Chan and world Cup failures
There was nothing joyful to write about the Senior Men’s team as they failed terribly in all competitions they took part.
First, from what appeared a weak group that had South Sudan, Malawi and Burkina Faso, Uganda failed to qualify for the 2021 Afcon tournament due in Cameroon.
Cranes fell to South Sudan in Nairobi and also 1-0 to Malawi in Blantyre to finish third in the Group.
In the World Cup qualifiers, the Cranes only won two games (all against Rwanda), failed to beat Kenya and Mali leaving the latter to top the Group with no resistance.
In the Chan tournament hosted in Cameroon early in the year, the local based Cranes again failed to break the group exit jinx at the expense of Morocco and Togo in a group that also had neighbours Rwanda.
In fact, they exited the tournament without picking any victory as they flatly fell to Morocco and Togo and could only draw with Rwanda.
Old Guards Wasswa, Azira and Onyango announce retirement
In the aftermath of the game in Malawi, a number of Uganda Cranes players announced retirement from international football.
Hassan Wasswa Mawanda, Mike Azira and Denis Onyango all said goodbye to the national team after several years of service in which they helped the team play at two Afcon tournaments (2017 & 2019).
But before that, many appeared to have fallen out with the Fufa President Moses Magogo who described their performance as ‘shitty’ and there was a leaked audio alleged to be of Onyango attacking Magogo over his shitty football statement.
McKinstry OUT, Micho BACK
Before the conclusion of the Afcon qualifiers campaign, Fufa terminated the contract of Northern Irish coach Johnathan McKinstry leaving his assistants Abdallah Mubiru, Livingston Mbabazi and Fred Kajoba to finish the campaign.
Sadly, they failed to deliver to the team to Cameroon with a draw and defeat to Burkina Faso and Malawi respectively denying them history.
McKinstry managed 18 games in all competitions winning 12, drawn and lost three following his appointment in September 2019.
His reign could perhaps have been better but the Covid19 pandemic didn’t help as schedules were affected.
He was replaced by Serbian Micho Sredojevic in July who had bitterly quit in 2017 after Afcon finals citing Fufa’s failure to pay his wages. The Qatar 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign was his immediate task but he failed to take the Cranes to the final play off stage.
Express win league and elusive Cecafa title
For the first time in nine years, Express FC won a league title as they sat top of the league at the time the league was halted due to Covid19 restrictions.
It was the second successive year the league was stopped after the same had happened in 2020.
The Red Eagles also went on lift the CECAFA Kagame Cup – their first in history.
The dark side is that they failed to replicate same performance in the Caf Champions League where they were eliminated by Sudan’s Al Merriekh in the first round.
Mike Mutebi reign at KCCA ends
After over five years in his third stint at KCCA, Mike Mutebi was forced to leave Lugogo following a poor string of results last season as early as March.
Mutebi who had a created a dynasty of his own at the Lugogo won several trophies including KCCA’s first ever double, a Cecafa Kagame Cup they had last won back in the 70s and also guided the club to Caf Champions League and Caf Confederation Cup group stages for the first time.
Mutebi wasn’t the only coaching causality as his ‘brother’ Sam Ssimbwa, Douglas Bamweyana and Fred Kajoba also left their coaching jobs in the same year.
Omar Mandela bounces back at SC Villa
After more than 15 years in wilderness, Hajji Omar Ahmed Mandela returned to SC Villa in an administrative capacity.
The City mogul had bitterly left the club in mid 2000s after he was attacked by Villa fans at Namboole before a league game against Iganga TC.
By then, he was the club treasurer but in a turn of events, Mandela is back as the club President and along with him, Immanuel Ben Misagga who had also quit in 2018.
Bobosi ‘wins’ Footballer of the Year award
The midfielder was part of the Hippos side that reached the Afcon finals in Mauritania, won the Stanbic Uganda Cup with Vipers in which he was voted MVP and crowned 2021 with the Player of the Year accolade.
It was an award that created debate as many believed Eric Kambale of Express had a better year though.
But the midfielder has since tried to prove his doubters wrong with fantastic performances for the Venoms and two fantastic long range goals including the equaliser to deny KCCA their first away at Kitende against Vipers.