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Kimaanya (red) lost 2-0 to St Mary's Kitende (blue) in the quarter finals of the USSSA boys football championship in Masaka last year. The team failed to make it to this year's edition
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By Our Reporter
As the Uganda U17 boys' football team, The Cubs, celebrated a historic moment by becoming the first Ugandan football team to qualify for a FIFA Men’s World Cup, the Blessed Sacrament Kimaanya (BSK) boys’ football team was left nursing the pain of missing out on a slot at the 2025 National USSSA Boys’ Football Championship.
The 2018 national schools’ football finalists will, for the first time, miss out on the prestigious local schools' football competition, scheduled for May 4–14 in Ngora, after failing to finish among the top three teams in the Masaka Zone qualifiers.
Part of the crowd that turned up for the quarterfinal game between Kitende and Kimaanya
BSK was eliminated at the group stage of the zonal championship that concluded last week in Masaka, losing 1–0 to St. Bernard’s Kiswera in their final group match. The top three slots were claimed by Masaka SS (winners), Notre Dame SS, and Waggwa High School. Kimaanya's early exit, however, was largely due to the absence of four of their star players who were away representing Uganda at the CAF U17 Championship in Morocco—players who were instrumental in helping Uganda secure its first-ever FIFA World Cup qualification.
Striker James Bogere, the two-goal hero in the semi-final against The Gambia and eventual Man of the Match winner, defender Elvis Toorach, and midfielders Isma Magara (the 2024 USSSA Masaka MVP) and Hamza Ssengooba, were all on national duty with the Cubs.
Kimaanya (red) lost 2-0 to St Mary's Kitende (blue) in the quarter finals of the USSSA boys football championship in Masaka last year
USSSA yet to respond
The Uganda Secondary Schools Sports Association (USSSA) has, in the past, made exceptions to include teams that failed to qualify on merit—usually for extraordinary reasons—even though the number of teams at the national championships is fixed.
Despite this precedent, USSSA has remained silent on Kimaanya’s situation. A message circulating on social media suggests that the Justus Mugisha-led association has agreed to invite Blessed Sacrament Kimaanya to participate in the national championship as guests, citing the absence of five key players who were with the national team in Morocco.
"USSSA has accepted to write a letter to Blessed Sacrament Kimaanya to participate in the national championship after failing to qualify from the Masaka Zone. Officials agreed to invite the school as guests after five of their starting players were with the Uganda U17 team that qualified for the World Cup. Watch out for this school at the Nationals in Ngora," the message reads.
Blessed Sacrament Kimaanya boys football team during the USSSA Championship in Masaka last week
However, USSSA Chief Executive Officer Chris Mugisha denied any official communication on the matter and confirmed that the association has not yet discussed the issue.
Kimaanya’s games teacher, James Kibira, was also reluctant to comment on the school's next steps, stating that they are still awaiting official communication.
Kimaanya's James Bogere pauses with the MOM accolade after the CUBS beat The Gambia 2-1 to qualify for FIFA World Cup
It’s worth noting that other schools that contributed players to the historic Cubs squad have all qualified for the Nationals. It would be unfortunate if Kimaanya’s four standout players are denied the opportunity to showcase their talent at the national stage with their school.
Last year, Kimaanya impressed at the Masaka zonal championship, playing crowd-pulling football and exiting in the quarterfinals after a 2–0 defeat to St. Mary’s Kitende.
Torch Media Africa
