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The Sharks held the Serengeti Boys to a 1-1 draw as the regional youth tournament now heads to the penultimate decisive stage
Djibouti joined Uganda and Ethiopia in the Cecafa U17 Championship despite a 1-1 draw against Tanzania on Friday in Rubavu, Rwanda.
Scorers Oscar Mawa and Ivan Irinimbabazi scored the goals that ensured Uganda won 3-0 in their match against Ethiopia in the second match played.
Uganda opened the game in the 17th minute when Mawa scored to give his team a well deserved goal given the determination they showed from the first whistle.
The Cubs doubled the lead in the 35th minute through Ivan Irinimbabazi to surprise Ethiopia, who had settled in and was fighting ambitiously to secure the tie.
In the 52nd minute, the Ethiopia coach made a change by introducing Mikiyas Ganta for Ismael Reshid in an effort to contain Uganda. Another change came to the time stamp when Bereket Mohamed came in to replace Tsega Arbrea.
The changes did not put off the determined Cubs who added the third goal in the 63rd minute through Mawa. The goal is the sixth of the juniors of the two-game youth tournament.
Uganda made a change in the 64th minute when Tuma Tenywa came out and his place was taken by Issa Bugembe. Six minutes later, Samir Mudiba replaced the author of Irinimbabazi’s second goal.
However, the defeat did not stop the young Ethiopians from joining their torturers Uganda, Djibouti and Tanzania in the semifinals.
In the first match played also in Rubavu, Djibouti was the surprising semi-finalist as they had been classified outside of the favorite teams that were prepared to progress in the youth tournament.
A 1-1 draw against Tanzania, which is their second such result in Group B, was enough to seal their place. In their opening match, they had held Rwanda, a team that the Serengeti Boys defeated 3-1, to a goalless draw.
An own goal by Abdek Mouhoumed in the 33rd minute seemed to have undone the Sharks’ great defensive work that had frustrated Tanzania for more than half an hour. In the 80th minute, Moktar Djama Ali scored to help Djibouti equalize and subsequently seal a spot in the semi-finals.
Djibouti did well to defend itself against the attacks, especially from Omar Myungi, who scored a double in the match against Rwanda, and finally ensured that the tie ended in a draw.
“I am very happy that after hard preparations we have reached the semi-final. Now let’s plan the knockout phase, ”Djibouti coach Mohamed Ali Affasseh said after the match.
The Cecafa U17 semi-finals will be played on Sunday while the play-off for third place and the final will be played on December 22.
The finalists will be guaranteed a place in the U-17 African Cup of Nations tournament to be held in Morocco in March 2021.
