Knight Riders have been offered another lifeline to cement their place in the MTN-Fuba League men’s topflight. The Entebbe-based side had been condemned to the lower tier after last year’s league but a boardroom decision has ensured their stay.
KCC Lions and UCU Canons will also not be relegated implying this season, the First Division will increase by two teams to 12. The development comes after the local sport’s governing body Fuba failed to decide who between KCC Lions and UCU Canons gets relegated alongside Knight Riders.
The two teams were involved in off-court battles in a bid to survive the drop after UCU Canons had missed their rescheduled game. “We made extensive consultations with Fiba Zone 5 and other stakeholders, which resulted in the decision to keep all the teams up,” Fuba assistant general secretary Joseph Manano said yesterday. “However, at the end of the forthcoming season, four teams will be relegated to Second Division,” he added.
Another season
This will be the first time Riders are spending more than one season in the topflight since 2007. With St. Michael and Berkley getting promoted from Second Division, Riders can fancy their chances of conjuring up some victories and stay yet another season. But they are likely to do that without their skipper Collin Mukiza, who seems ready to join another team. “I have ambitions of playing in the postseason and I doubt I can achieve that goal with Riders,” Mukiza said. The league starts on March 19 but teams will test their squads in the Makerere University Open tournament due later this month.