UGANDA PREMIER LEAGUE
The Date: May 12th, 2023
The Contest: Onduparaka FC vs. Vipers SC
The Time: 4pm
The Venue: Ababet Greenlight Stadium

Vipers SC made a long trip to West Nile to take on Onduparaka FC in the Uganda Premier League, at the Ababet Greenlight Stadium on Friday.

It is expected to be all guns out for the Venoms who are looking for a quick turnaround, following Tuesday’s 1-0 defeat to Soltilo Bright Stars FC in Kavumba.

“We had a very strong run before Tuesday’s result. So, we just want to continue with that,” a confident Alex Isabirye told the club press ahead of the tie.

“I know it won’t be an easy game because we are coming up against a team fighting relegation but we need to respond strongly.”

While we are vying to retain the league title, as victory will have us at the summit, our opponents are chasing survival, making the tie even more significant.

“We have shown that we have the quality to respond, so let’s focus on that tomorrow. It’s how you respond that makes your season with three games to go.”

Meanwhile team captain, Milton Karisa re-echoed the boss’ words, asserting the need for maximum points.

“We know we have to respond. Losing on Tuesday was very hard to take. It is going to be very difficult, it’s a big challenge for us now but we are hungrier than ever to respond.”

The Venoms won the reverse fixture in the first round 4-0 at the St Mary’s Stadium, Kitende, courtesy of strikes from Karisa, Bright Anukani, Karim Watambala and Ibrahim Orit.

We have also dominated this fixture since 2016 when Onduparaka joined the top-flight.

Heading into the 13th meeting, our record stands at 8 wins, 3 draws and 1 loss out of the previous 12 encounters with a return of 20 goals against 3.

Head-To-Head

Meetings: 12
Vipers wins: 8
Draws; 3
Losses: 1
Goals for: 20
Against: 3
Points: 27

Past 6 meetings at Greenlight Stadium

2016/17: Onduparaka 1-0 Vipers

2017/18: Onduparaka 0-0 Vipers

2018/19: Onduparaka 0-0 Vipers

2019/20: Onduparaka 0-0 Vipers

2020/21: Onduparaka 1-3 Vipers

2021/22: Onduparaka 0-2 Vipers

Team News:

Yunus Sentamu returns to the match day squad for the first time since suffering a knee injury on April 22nd, 2023 in our match against URA FC.

Murushid Juuko and Alfred Mudekereza are still under rehabilitation process and unavailable but are all progressing well and closing in on a return to action.

Marvin Joseph Youngman who suffered an ankle problem has been ruled out for the rest of the 2022/2023 football season.