Uganda Crested Cranes coach explains capitulation against Harambee Starlets
Reading Time: 2min | Wed. 18.06.25. | 08:53
Botes noted that her team started the game reasonably well but lost their grip after conceding two quickfire goals from set pieces
Uganda Crested Cranes head coach Sheryl Ulanda Botes has admitted that the first two goals her team conceded from set pieces shattered their confidence, leading to a 4-0 drubbing by Kenya in a CECAFA Women’s Championship match played on Tuesday night.
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Harambee Starlets ruthlessly dismantled their neighbours, with Diana Wacera opening the scoring before captain Dorcas Shikobe added a second. Violet Nanjala made it 3-0 before halftime, and in the second half, Martha Amunyolet scored her third goal of the tournament to complete the rout.
The win marked Kenya’s second victory in as many games, having thumped Burundi 3-0 in their opener. Uganda, on the other hand, suffered their second defeat of the tournament, following a 1-0 loss to Burundi.
The Crested Cranes registered a 5-0 victory over South Sudan in their second game of the tournament before meeting Kenya.
In her post-match comments, Botes took time to congratulate Kenya for their dominant performance.
“First of all, well done to Kenya. I think they did a really good job,” she said.
Botes noted that her team started the game reasonably well but lost their grip after conceding two quickfire goals from set pieces, which severely affected their confidence.
“We had four good chances in the first half that could have made things more difficult for Kenya, but when we conceded from the two free kicks, it was almost like the girls lost confidence in the game.”
Shortly after the second goal, Uganda made a midfield substitution, which Botes explained was a tactical move, as Kenya had overpowered them in that area.
“Our midfield rotation didn’t work as we had planned. You could see in the 30th minute we made a substitution—we thought the player we brought in could give us more stability because Kenya were very strong in midfield.
We also had to get our wingers to tuck inside and make it more compact.”
Uganda showed slight improvement after the break, and Botes said they made adjustments to retain possession and limit Kenya’s threat.
“We did well in the second half. We changed a few things at halftime and tried to keep the ball more because we stopped using the long balls that Kenya had capitalised on.”
Next for Uganda is a clash against the group leaders, Tanzania, on Thursday, and Botes hopes her team will have recovered from the setback.
“We learn, we pick up the pieces, and hopefully the girls will be ready to face Tanzania.”
