By Johnson Were
UCU Lady Canons will miss the services of three of their star players during the FIBA Zone 5 Basketball Club Championship later this month in Kampala.
International competition rules allow a club to field only two foreign players on its team. The Canons have five foreign players, Lorraine Akinyi, Brenda Mbonye, Asiya Syria, Salome Oketch and Hadija Shaban from Kenya.
UCU sports administrator Cornelius Engwenyu said: “We were ready for the tournament but we have been disorganised by the FIBA rule which we came to know of a few days back.”
“We also learnt that even the two we are allowed to field must have transfer certificates from the Kenya Federation which we don’t have yet,” Engwenyu noted. He said they had requested the local federation, FUBA, for advise.
However FUBA president Ambrose Tashobya clarified that UCU has only the option of selecting the best two of the five for their squad.
“We know they are students but FUBA will help UCU to secure transfers for only two players they choose to use. Other issues are for FIBA,” Tashobya noted.
Meanwhile Barco Stars and New Stars clubs from Burundi are the latest to confirm participation in this year’s championship, bringing the entry to 17.