Uganda has focussed on building for the future, as it celebrated the ICC cricket week September 2-9.

The festivites come close on the heels of the annual Coca Cola schools cricket week championship, that last Friday August 31, had a new winner for the first time in eight years. King's College Budo, led by 18-year-old international Richard Okia, brought to a halt the eight year reign of Busoga College Mwiri.

Tom Tikolo, the regional ICC development officer, is back in the country for the World cricket week for awareness of the game. The week began with a course for shools games masters. The local development officer William Kamanyi also welcomed teachers from non-playing schools Luwero SSS and Bethany High School who are attending the course in a bid to introduce cricket in their schools.

The week continues with a 10-day academy for 30 upcoming players from the 14 schools that competed at the Schools Cricket Week. They will be in residence at Lugogo until September 10.

The Kenya-based officer has again hailed the improved performance by the Ugandan schools and remarked that it was an indicator for development of cricket in the region.

The closing event to mark the World cricket week, will be a match between White Caps ( a team of expatriates) led by Henry Rudd and the Abagurusi (veteran players) led by John Nagenda on Saturday September 8.

Meanwhile, Ugandan opener Lawrence Ssematimba plundered 137 runs as Bank of Baroda cricket league leaders Destroyers cemented their place at the top with an emphatic 305 run win over defending champions Premier Sunday, September 2.

Destroyers, top of the eight team league, put on 405 for six at the Kyambogo Oval. Ssematimba got able support from Nand Kishore (86) and Keyur Padia (65 n.o).

Premier managed a modest 100 after medium pace bowler Nand Kishore (5/23) and Kenneth Kamyuka (3/18) left them stranded after 18 overs at Kyambogo oval.

At Lugogo oval, Tornado 147/10 edged Wanderers 141/10 by six runs in the other match of the day.

Destroyers are all but champions now, but will hope three of their stars who are headed for trials in South African leave after they have sealed it. Kenneth Kamyuka, Richard Okia, Lawrence Ssematimba, Tornado's Joel Olweny and Africa Clubs Franco Nsubuga are earmarked to move anytime.

Table standings

                 P    	W  	L    	D  	Pts
Destroyers  	11     10  	1     	0  	282
Tornado       	10   	8   	2     	0  	218
ACC              9      6   	3     	0  	188
Wanderers  	10   	6   	4     	0  	187
Lohana         	10  	4    	6    	0  	123
Premier        	11  	3    	8    	0   	103
Nile             8   	1   	7     	0   	 85
JACC             9   	0   	9     	0   	 40

Behind every succesful man, there is a woman -- so goes the saying.

Women, cannot be said to have been the trick behind Uganda's emergence as ICC cricket's 10th most powerful Associate nation, but the UCA are laying the ground just for that in future.

Uganda will belatedly host the inaugural East African womens championship in December. The championship was postponed in August to the December school holidays after the Kenyans failed to get travel documents in time to make the trip to Kampala.

" We can only host the event during school holidays because the bulk of the players are students," UCA secretary Justine Ligyalingi said.School going players form the bulk of all three teams.

The three-nation championship, will be another step in popularising the game among women on a continent whose only other participants are in test playing nations South Africa and Zimbabwe.

Womens cricket in Kampala is the fruit of a mini-cricket programme for primary schools that has been going on for years. Mini-cricket is played by both boys and girls, with the girls who went on to secondary school now forming the bulk of the womens national team.

The womens team made their international debut in April when they had a three-match tour of Kenya.

Uganda, led by Belinda Nakigganda, won two games and lost one on their historic tour. Nakigganda, daughter to Ugandan cricket guru Abbey Kits Lutaya, is captain at Gayaza, one of five cricket playing girls secondary schools.

The others are Budo, Ndejje, Nalinya and Taiba. Womens cricket it seems, has laid a firm foundation in this east African nation.

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