Uganda Hippos win, South Sudan go down fighting in TotalEnergies U-20 AFCON

_{Uganda made a winning start at the on-going 2023 TotalEnergies U-20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) on Monday.}

_{The Hippos dispatched The Central African Republic 2-1 in the first Group B match played at the Suez Canal Stadium.}

_{Skipper Isma Mugulusi gave the Hippos the lead after 47 minutes, and John Paul Dembe made it 2-0 after 74 minutes as coach Jackson Mayanja’s team dominated play. Boris Gbenou pulled one back for The Central African Republic in added time.}

_{Titus Ssematimba, Ivan Irinimbabazi and Travis Mutyaba all caused The Central African Republic defenders all sorts of trouble.}

_{“”My lads played a good game and the first game is not always easy at big tournaments like this. It’s a big stage for the players and we won against a good team. But we need to keep focused for the other matches to come,” said Uganda’s coach Mayanja.}

_{In the second Group B match debutants South Sudan put up a spirited fight but lost 2-1 to Congo Brazzaville. Maurile Bassinga netted the opening goal for Congo Brazzaville at the stroke of half time, and Sousou Ilendo doubled the scores after the interval off a penalty.}

_{The junior Bright Star continued to attack and were rewarded when Paul Mara scored with seven minutes to full time. Peter James, the South Sudan coach said they were unlucky to get a key players injured earlier, but added that his team had played better in the second half.}

_{Action in Group B will return on Thursday with joint table leaders Uganda Hippos and Congo Brazzaville facing off, while South Sudan take on The Central African Republic. The 12-team competition will climax on March 11th.}

_{The tournament also doubles as the African qualifiers for the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup held in Indonesia. The top four teams will qualify for the World Cup.}