Al Merriekh 1 Express 0 (Al Merriekh advance 2-2 on away goals)
Express FC’s dream of advancing to the second preliminary round of the CAF Champions League was shattered on Sunday night when they lost 1-0 away in Sudan to bow out on away goals rule.
An Ahmed Hamed 74th minute strike at the Al-Ubayyid Stadium in Obeid City ensured the hosts tied the fixture 2-2 after both legs, their away goal at the St. Mary’s Stadium proving very crucial in the end.
The Red Eagles were consequently ejected from the tournament despite having won 2-1 at home, ten days ago.
But this has not shaken coach Wasswa Bbosa who says his boys are just going to build on the experience they have gained in the tournament to defend the league but also win other domestic trophies
“We are out but I can’t blame my players because we were disorganised by the hosts, firstly by them changing the original venue and making us travel again to another venue but the officiating was also not good. The referees were on assignment to ensure the hosts win,” Bbosa said post-match.
“But we are going to remain focused to ensure we win the Uganda Cup. Most of my players just made their debut in this competition so we are going to ensure they build on this experience so that we can defend the league trophy in the coming season. Our fans should not lose hope, we are going to ensure we continue winning other matches,” Bbosa stated
Team captain Enock Walusimbi also mentioned the need to build on the experience they have gained to win other silverware.
“It wasn’t our day, we failed to concentrate in the dying minutes but we put in our best; it was their chance to qualify but we are going to use this experience to come back strong,” Walusimbi said.
Express were hoping to build on the recent experience that saw them win the CECAFA Club Championship in Tanzania but the CAF Champions League is a bigger stage that calls for a lot of things.
Express produced a nervy performance at Kitende, casually losing the ball on a number of occasions, with their opponents dictating play for long spells in the game. But they prevailed and carried that slim lead which in the end proved insufficient.
Express FC assistant Coach James Odoch had after the first leg at the St. Mary’s Stadium pointed out the need to introduce ball players to counter Al Merriekh’s ball-possessing abilities and in Sunday’s game introduced Joseph Byamukama who started in place of Daniel Shabene who started the first leg, but it didn’t help matters. The Sudanese will face Zambia’s Zanaco FC in the second round.
Against Al-Merriekh, Express was up against a side that eliminated them from the African Cup Winners Cup tournament on a 2-1 aggregate in 1992 and on a 3-2 aggregate the following year in 1993.
In 1992, Al-Merriekh won the first leg 1-0 in Khartoum before holding Express FC to a 1-1 draw in Kampala to eliminate them. It was the same in 1993 when the Sudanese side won 3-0 at home and despite losing the return leg in Kampala 2-0 to Express FC, the latter bowed out of the competition.
Express XI: Joel Mutakubwa, Enock Walusimbi, Arthur Kiggundu, Isa Lumu, Murushid Jjuuko, John Byamukama, Mahad Yaya, Muzamir Mutyaba, Eric Kambale, Godfrey Lwesibawa, and Martin Kizza.
