Uganda’s She Cranes recovered from a 44-54 loss to New Zealand earlier on Saturday to register a convincing 74-33 win over Trinidad & Tobago in the ongoing Netball World Cup 2023 on Sunday.

Uganda had in the previous World Cup in Liverpool, snatched a narrow 57-54 win over the Calypso Girls – and that seemed to work on the players’ minds going into Sunday’s opening quarter – trailing in the opening minutes before gaining composure to challenge their opponents.

Utility player Muhameed Haniisha who started from defence, proved a thorn in the face of Trinidad & Tobago shooters – Joelisa Cooper and Afeisha Noel. She intercepted a number of their moves and the team settled to take the first quarter.

The second quarter saw Uganda dictating terms with goal shooters; Mary Nuba and Irene Eyaru converting attempts into goals leading to a 33-18 lead at halftime.

On resumption, Uganda pounded more pressure onto their opponents and the Calypso Girls’ individual efforts through Joelisa Cooper and Alena Brooks only resulted in nine turnovers in general play as the She Cranes stood firmly in their way, playing as a solid unit – frustrating their opponents from any available opportunity.

The last quarter saw She Cranes sustaining their dominance as accurate passes resulted into open scoring opportunities with centre Margret Baagala superbly coordinating between the attackers and defence. And it was no surprise that team captain, Irene Eyaru picked the medal of the Most Valuable Player (MVP) on the day.

The win assured Uganda of a slot into the next stage – qualifying as group D’s second-best on four points, two behind New Zealand. The tournament which enters stage II on Monday will climax on August 6.