She Cranes are to make it to the next step come January 2024

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | She Cranes Head Coach, Fred Mugerwa is confident of the team’s performance ahead of the the Vitality Netball Nations Cup and the Wales Test Series.

The She Cranes embarked on preparations for the two invitation tournaments which serve as a consolation after missing out on the African Netball Championship.

The upcoming tournament, featuring powerhouses like Australia, New Zealand, England, and Uganda is scheduled for January 20-21 at Wembley, London, and later on January 27-28 at the First Direct Arena in Leeds.

For two weeks, the team has been undergoing rigorous training sessions at the Kamwokya TLC facility under the guidance of Assistant Coach Nurudine Kato.

Mugerwa joined the camp in late December, intensifying preparations and relocating the team to the MTN Indoor Arena. Mugerwa explained that this move was influenced by the type of arenas they would encounter in the main tournament.

“The reason why we requested this is that we want to get used to playing indoors because where we are going we are going to be playing indoors. Here the floor is smooth and everybody was excited to be in.” Mugerwa said.

Assessing the players’ performance over the last two weeks, Mugerwa said that all summoned players are adapting well. He noted excellent coordination among the players, adding that they are eagerly anticipating the travel day.

The test series will be a comfort to the She Cranes, who have consistently performed admirably on the continent and around the world but were withdrawn from the Africa Netball Championship, citing challenges in quickly organizing the team amidst managerial unrest.

This decision which was taken by the Netball Normalization Committee came amidst a crisis that saw the National Council of Sports revoke the certificate of recognition for the Uganda Netball Federation (UNF), responsible for overseeing the national netball team.

The management turmoil stemmed from a clash between Uganda Netball Federation President Sarah Babirye Kityo and National Council of Sports General Secretary Patrick Ogwel. Kityo accused Ogwel of compelling the Federation to account for funds that were never provided, while Ogwel accused Kityo of misappropriating government funds.

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URN