Uganda Senior Women’s National Team assistant coach Ahumuza Collins says the Crested Cranes have enough quality and experience to match Zambia’s Copper Queens in tomorrow’s first leg of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games qualifiers.

Uganda will host Zambia at Hamz Stadium, Nakivubo, with kick-off scheduled for 16:00 local time.

Collins stressed the importance of making home advantage count as Uganda looks to secure a positive result before the return leg.

“Playing the first leg at home is important for us. We have to make the most of the home advantage and use the support of our fans to give us an extra push,” she noted.

She also acknowledged the quality of the Zambian side while pointing to the experience within the Crested Cranes squad.

“We know Zambia is a good team and we respect their quality. However, we also have experienced players who have played at this level before, and we believe they can match the challenge,” she added.

Uganda will draw confidence from previous meetings with Zambia. The Crested Cranes defeated the Copper Queens 1-0 in the 2018 COSAFA Women’s Championship third-place playoff before recording a 5-0 victory in an international friendly in Marrakech in 2022.

However, Uganda faces a daunting task against a Copper Queens side that has qualified for the last two editions of the Olympics and boasts some of Africa’s best female players, including Barbra Banda and Racheal Kundananji.

After tomorrow’s game, attention will shift to Ndola, where the Copper Queens will host Uganda at Levy Mwanawasa Stadium on Tuesday.

The winner over the two legs will advance to the third round of the qualifiers, where they will face either Ghana or Mauritius.