Tuesday, September 7
*Uganda 3-1 Burkina Faso
*Cameroon 3-1 DR Congo
*South Sudan 2-3 Ethiopia
*Mali 3-2 Niger
*Burundi 0-3 Rwanda
*Nigeria 0-3 Tunisia
Uganda men’s Volleyball national team, the Volleyball Cranes, beat Burkina Faso to get off the mark at the ongoing 2021 Men’s African Nations Volleyball Championship.
Uganda, making their debut at the tournament in Kigali, won 3-1 (25-15, 25-18, 26-28, 25-13) at the Kigali Arena.
The side was on course to win in straight sets but Burkina Faso pegged them back to take the third 28-26.
The hard-hitting Volleyball Cranes, under new coach Shilla Omuriwe Buyingo, managed to win the fourth quarter 25-13 to seal the deserved victory.
“We are happy to have won the first game. The first game is not that easy,” started Volleyball Cranes Setter Smith Okumu.
“We became complacent when we took a 2-0 advantage thinking its all but done, but anyway, the most important thing is that we have managed to get away with maximum points and its all that matters.”
Uganda who are pitted in Group A, will return to action on Thursday against Burundi before facing hosts Rwanda the following day.
The sixteen countries are competing in the Championship with the top two teams in each of the four groups reaching the quarterfinals.
How Uganda Volleyball Cranes Started – George Aporu, Gideon Angiro, Smith Okumu, Sam Engwau, Bernard Malinga, Daudi Okello, Emma Elanyu
The Pools
Group A – Rwanda, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Uganda
Group B – Tunisia, Nigeria, Ethiopia, South Sudan
Group C – Cameroon, DR Congo, Mali, Niger
Group D – Egypt, Morocco, Tanzania, Kenya
