Uganda’s national netball team, the She Cranes, opened their Africa Netball Cup 2026 campaign with two comfortable wins over Nigeria and Zambia at the Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani.
The She Cranes eased past Nigeria with a 68–30 victory before taking on higher-ranked Zambia in the afternoon, a game that saw them lose a quarter.
Uganda won the first quarter 22–7 and maintained their lead into halftime at 35–18. Zambia tried to close the gap in the third quarter, outscoring Uganda by three goals to end the period at 44–30.
“Today’s game was a bit hard, but since we had a good warm-up, we started well and we’ve managed to win by a good margin,” She Cranes goal shooter Christine Namulumba noted.
Uganda came out for the kill in the final quarter, winning it by five goals to stretch the margin to 19 and seal a 59–40 victory.
Regarding tomorrow’s game against Kenya, the last in the group stage, Namulumba, who has played against their defenders a couple of times, is confident the Cranes can get the job done.
“I personally know them. Having faced them at club level and on the national team, yes, I know they are physical, but we are also coming at them hard.”
The eight-day championship, running from September 19 to 26, brings together some of Africa’s leading women’s and men’s netball teams, with continental honours and World Cup qualification at stake.
The women’s field has been divided into two pools: South Africa, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Botswana, and Tanzania in Pool 1, while Pool 2 features Uganda, Malawi, Zambia, hosts Kenya, and Nigeria.
Photo credit: Olivia Nakatte
