“I left because they no longer listen to me.”
That was Robert Mukasa, former Buhimba United Saints head coach, explaining how a Uganda Premier League side Buhimba United Saints Football Club ended up failing to honour a Matchday 28 wrap up fixture against NEC FC on Wednesday evening at Lugogo.
The match was scheduled for 8pm. NEC FC players arrived. Match officials, led by referee Solomon Jjumba, were ready. But Buhimba United Saints never showed up.
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What followed was the collapse of a season under financial strain.
According to FUFA regulations, failure to honour a fixture results in forfeiture and can attract further punishment, including a three point deduction and a 3-0 loss. If applied, Buhimba would be relegated with two matches still to play.
Just a day before the no-show, Mukasa had stepped down as head coach. Speaking to Sanyuka Prime Sports journalist James Ssegawa, he opened up on what led to his exit and the team’s failure to travel.
“I have been convincing them for a while,” Mukasa said. “At times I used my own money to make sure players came for matches.”
He said the financial struggle had reached a point where even transport to training became a problem.
“Some players had no transport money or even money for their families. I would give them at least 20,000 shillings so they could come,” he revealed.
Mukasa said he stayed on hoping the team could finish the season before any changes were made.
“I was trying my best so the league ends and we wait for new management,” he said. “But the players also deserved their salaries. They were struggling.”
For him, the core problem was simple, lack of money.
“You cannot manage a team where you are using your own money as a coach and players still don’t listen,” Mukasa said. “That is wrong in football.”
He added that he kept pushing the squad even after warning signs had already appeared.
“After the Express game, I told them to fight on and honour the remaining fixtures,” he said.
But the situation worsened. Players, frustrated by unpaid wages, eventually stopped responding to instructions.
“They reached a point where they couldn’t listen anymore because I kept telling them they would be paid, yet nothing came,” Mukasa said.
“So I left, and that is why they didn’t travel for NEC.”
Reports had already shown cracks in the team. Against Express FC, players arrived late amid protests over unpaid salaries and lost 2-0.
This time, they did not arrive at all, now Buhimba United Saints face disciplinary action, possible points deduction, and a looming relegation, ending a season that collapsed not on the pitch, but long before kickoff.
