Uganda is pooled in Group F alongside Algeria, Niger and Tanzania. Among the competition, only Algeria, winners of the 2019 Afcon edition, looks set to trouble Uganda most. The Cranes have lined up a relatively experienced attack but with a lot to prove at the big stage.
When it comes to big stages, few matches come to my mind like the October 2, 1998 qualifier against Algeria when Hassan Mubiru made a grant debut for the national team. Uganda had not been to Algeria since 1983 but was spurred on to end the jinx by a vociferous Nakivubo stadium crowd.
It mattered little that Majid Musisi had failed to make the trip to Kampala because coach Asumani Lubowa was confident in the new gem in Mubiru, who had had a good season with SC Villa by scoring goals at an alarming rate.
It was widely viewed that the decision to start Mubiru in such a big game was a gamble but it paid off later in the second half when he connected with Phillip Obwin’s delightful cross to give The Cranes the lead. The youthful striker wheeled away in celebrations amidst wild cheers from fans who brave a heavy downour.
However, celebrations were short-lived when Algerian gem Bilal Dziri overran The Cranes midfield and scored a beautiful goal from distance. As the clock ticked towards full time, and with huge crowd silent, Mubiru did the unthinkable when he intercepted a bad clearance by the Algerian defence before striking a sensational volley into the roof of the net from an acute angle.
It was a sensational end to the pulsating match and fans stormed the pitch at the final whistle to lift the new star of Ugandan football. I am not so sure whether any of the current star players can come close to replicate that Mubiru performance but it is a moment worth sharing for the catapultic impact it had on Mubiru’s career.
Club heroics
From then on, Mubiru became part and parcel of the national team even though he did not score many goals as was expected. However, he became the poster boy for his club SC Villa and his combination with Andrew Mukasa was a joy to watch. Both scored 14 goals for the 1998 season but the following (1999) season, the ‘Mu-Mu’ tandem scored 67 goals.
Mubiru went on to score 25 goals in 2000 season—something which attracted Express to sign him up. He did not disappoint as emerged the league top scorer with 27 goals in 2001.
He continued to star in the league, emerging top scorer for the 2002 and 2003 seasons with 22 and 21 goals respectively. In 2005, Mubiru left Express and had stints in Rwanda and Denmark but still things failed to work out. He returned to Express in 2007.
However, a nagging knee injury forced him to end his 13-year career and currently, he is part of Express’ technical staff in charge of strikers.
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