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As the inaugural CECAFA Nile Basin Cup tournament goes into the finals in Khartoum City this Wednesday afternoon, the CECAFA Secretary General Nicholas Musonye believes despite the numerous hurdles, the region is headed for a better destination in football development. Read on:-
Qn. The finals are today, are you impressed with the performance so far?
So much impressed, there is a lot of talent here and all teams have offered their best. There are no longer big and small clubs in this region-they all play good football. Ahly Shandy, Al-Merreikh, Victoria University, Academie Tchite from Burundi and many others have all displayed tactical football during this tournament. Once again, I am impressed.
Qn. What do you consider the biggest achievement here?
The CECAFA Nile Basin Cup has offered an opportunity to new clubs to compete at international level. I am told almost the whole team of Academie Tchite [Burundi] had not been on flight before but they only got knocked out in the quarter finals. Mbeya City, Dkhill and Malakia had never participated in such tournaments but looked tactically good. These and many others have all left Khartoum better than they came. We have encouraged them to practice what they have learnt from here when they get back home.
We have also had young referees some of whom were surfacing the first time in these tournaments. They now boost of a vast experience acquired here.
Qn. Who sponsored this event?
It’s the government of Sudan in conjunction with the Sudanese Football Association and the Council of East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA). I am grateful to Sudan government and the FA for the continued support extended to football development in this region. We all have a reason to say thank you so much to Sudan. All the eleven clubs were flown to Khartoum, accommodated, fed and provided internal transport. Our stay here has been very confortable away from home. Other member associations should emulate these acts.
Qn. Any prize money for the winners?
The same sponsors have offered USD 60.000 in total as the prize money package. The cup winners return home with USD 30,000, the runners up take USD 20,000 and USD 10,000 for the third place winners. We have the medals and the trophies already with us. It’s an inaugural cup but very well organized. We are grateful to all our partners.
Any challenges encountered?
We still have many challenges especially logistical ones but we shall continue looking for potential partners to come on board. The fact that we had mainly new clubs in this particular tournament, it has gone with challenges especially in areas of team sheets, technical preparations and time management among others but generally the discipline has not been bad. One of the purposes of such tournaments is to prepare our clubs for CAF and FIFA competitions. We therefore endeavor to give the clubs tips on how to avoid such mistakes again.
Qn. And the next hosts?
The Annual CECAFA Congress to sit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in late November will deliberate on many issues including the host nations of all the next tournaments. I however wish to thank the entire team I have worked with on the ground headed by the CECAFA Vice President Lawrence Mulindwa for the commitment showed. There has been a superb dissemination of information across the region by our Media department. I thank everybody for good work done.
Qn. So what next after the Nile Basin Cup?
We are having the CECAFA –Kagame Club Championship in Kigali this August and all Member Association premier League Champions will be on stage. We shall try to make it the best ever and I am delighted to mention that our Patron and President of the Republic of Rwanda H.E Gen. Paul Kagame has already released the prize money for that tournament. The government of Rwanda, CECAFA and FERWAFA are working around the clock to ensure a very successful tournament. As CECAFA we have all the praises for President Paul Kagame for the good working relationship we have had with him for the last 13 years.
In September, we shall return to Sudan for the U23 CECAFA tournament in North Kordofan . I am already in touch with the area Governor for the necessary preparations.
Qn. Why the U23?
We need to prepare for the Olympic Games in 2016. The tournament in Sudan will help the teams check their weaknesses a head of the Olympic competitions and put their mistakes right. As a region, we look forward to having at least two teams in the Olympic finals.
Qn. Any final word to your CECAFA Members?
We need to get more and more united in order to push for bigger things. Our zone organizes more competitions than any other in the Continent and we must continue improving on our weak areas. The most undoing has been the poor shows in both CAF and FIFA competitions. Member Associations should prioritize these areas starting this on- going campaign. When we do this, the future for CECAFA will be brighter.
I congratulate all the clubs that participated in this inaugural CECAFA Nile Basin Cup tournament and the finalists for the good display of football.
Rogers Mulindwa
CECAFA MEDIA MANAGER
+249-927-320-683
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