The winger states cancellation of the Cranes’ residential training camp was important in as far as dealing with the spread of Covid-19 is concerned
Uganda Revenue Authority (URA FC) forward Joakim Ojera has said he was not hurt by the cancellation of their training camp ahead of the suspended African Nations Championship (Chan) tournament.
Uganda had to call off their training camp following the government’s call to stop all sporting activities in a bid to help minimise the spread of the coronavirus.
Uganda’s Cranes, under coach Johnathan McKinstry, had been in camp for 17 days before it was cancelled and Ojera was quick to state it was a good move.
The Cecafa champions were preparing for both Chan and a tri-nation tournament which had been scheduled for March 17-21, before both events were cancelled in an attempt to prevent Covid-19 from spreading.
“Yes, it is always safety and good health first. Fine, I may be hurt by the cancellation of the training camp but it was worthwhile since it is a global threat,” Ojera told Kawowo Sports.
Ojera, who was part of the team which won a Cecafa title in Kampala in 2019, said he was delighted to have been called up again by head coach McKinstry.
“It is a great blessing to serve your country fearlessly,” he added.
“I thank the coaches for the national team and my club as well as those coaches who handled me earlier. They have all done a great job to teach me what to do, encourage me and move an extra mile.”
The winger also revealed the working relationship between his fellow teammates and the coaching unit and what they learnt during the suspended training camp.
“I have had a great amazing two weeks of training and I wished we did not stop. I cannot fail to thank coach [Johnathan] McKinstry and his support staff,” concluded Ojera.
“All the coaches encouraged us to do our best. Every day was a special day of learning, joy and happiness. The healthy competition amongst the team helped me as a person to raise my personal level.
“I have learnt a lot from my fellow teammates and we are one happy family.”
When they will resume training for Chan again, Ojera will fight against KCCA FC’s Julius Poloto to win McKinstry’s faith and make into the final squad for the biennial tournament.
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