Uganda Shines in inaugural Hawley Cup Pool tournament

Uganda finished second in the team event, falling just one point behind South Africa after a thrilling final-round victory over South Africa ‘4’. The Pool Cranes were awarded silver medals in the round-robin championship, which featured four teams.

Despite missing out on the All Africa Pool Association (AAPA) championship due to visa delays, Uganda made up for the lost opportunity by securing second place in the inaugural Hawley Cup held at Montecasino in South Africa. The tournament, which ran in conjunction with the World Pool – Billiard Association and Blackball International, concluded on Monday night, with the women’s team claiming a well-deserved silver medal.

Uganda finished second in the team event, falling just one point behind South Africa after a thrilling final-round victory over South Africa ‘4’. The Pool Cranes were awarded silver medals in the round-robin championship, which featured four teams.

Reflecting on the achievement, Marion Kisakye expressed her excitement, saying:

“It gives me pleasure to be part of this team and winning silverware on my debut. We just need to be confident and win bigger things. I hope it’s the first of many to come.”

Uganda skipped the African championship as they faced issues with visa processing, but their prowess was still on full display in the Hawley Cup.

Caesar Chandiga, a standout performer, bagged a $4,000 money challenge victory against South Africa’s Aden Joseph. However, his journey was short in the men’s singles, as he was eliminated by Pearson Masha with a 6-4 score in the last 16. Simon Lubuulwa met a similar fate, succumbing to South African Philani Nkosi at the same stage.

In the women’s singles, Nayiga had an impressive run but was halted in the semifinals by a 6-1 loss to South Africa’s Fawzia Adriaanse. She didn’t let that setback define her tournament, though, as she went on to win the third-place play-off against Beatrice Monyake, securing a silver medal and a cash prize of Shs1m.

Marion Kisakye, known as Ankah Sheila, made a memorable debut, clinching a bronze in the women’s doubles alongside Rose Namugerwa. Despite losing in the women’s singles competition to Beatrice Monyake, Kisakye stood tall in the doubles event.

“It gives me pleasure to be part of this team and winning silverware on my debut. We just need to be confident and win bigger things. I hope it’s the first of many to come,” – Kisakye said.

The men’s championship was dominated by the hosts, with South Africa ‘B’ emerging as the champions and securing all the podium places.

In the U23 competition, Kenneth Odong, the PAU Grand Open winner of 2023, emerged victorious after a nail-biting final, defeating Kumeshen Nadasen 7-6 in Monday night’s final. The pair of Ian Kazibwe and Rashida Mutesi secured a silver medal in the U23 doubles, falling to South Africa’s Rayaan Williams and Ifraan Williams with a 7-1 score.

2023 Hawley Cup

Uganda’s performance
Gold – women’s doubles (Nayiga & Mutesi)
Silver – women’s singles (Nayiga)

Bronze – Women doubles (Kisakye & Namugerwa)
Bronze – Men’s doubles (Lubuulwa & Odong)
Silver – U23 mixed doubles (Mutesi & Kazibwe)

Source: monitor.co.ug

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