The Federation of Uganda Football Associations (FUFA) announced on Monday that it has parted ways with national team coach Johnathan McKinstry. The Northern Irishman has agreed to end his contract in charge of Uganda’s national football team after just 18 months in charge.
Uganda recorded 12 wins, three draws and three defeats under his tenure, which is a 67% win percentage.
McKinstry led Uganda to the 2019 Council for East and Central African Football Associations (CECAFA) Challenge Cup with the team winning all their games for only the second time in their history. However, a poor showing at the recent African Nations Championship (CHAN) saw him suspended for a while.
FUFA did not wait to see if McKinstry could lead Uganda into the AFCON finals as he was sacked with 2 qualifying games to still go, with them having every chance to qualify. They handed the reins of the national team to Abdallah Mubiru and assistants Livingston Mbabazi and Fred Kajoba for their final two Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers last month but that did not help in any way as the Ugandans only managed 1 draw and a loss in those games as they were knocked out in the group stages.
“Johnathan McKinstry, has today reached an agreement with FUFA to bring an end to his 18 months at the helm of the Uganda Cranes,” read the statement.
“FUFA would like to thank Coach McKinstry and his staff for the work and dedication to developing the Uganda Cranes during their tenure.
“We would like to thank Coach McKinstry for the professionalism demonstrated during his employment with FUFA, and we wish him well in all his future endeavours.”
Jonathan McKinstry posted the following statement on his own website: “It has been my pleasure to work with dedicated staff and players to develop the Uganda Cranes since 2019 – a period that saw us win 2 in every 3 games, recording a 67% WIN rate – including 12 wins, 3 draws and only 3 defeats across our time together.
“It was particularly rewarding to lead Uganda to victory in the CECAFA Challenge Cup 2019 by winning all of our games, something which has only been achieved once before by Uganda in their history.
“My thanks also to the wider football fraternity in Uganda for their support over the last 18 months, and to the players and staff for their contribution and efforts during our time together. I wish both FUFA and the Uganda Cranes the very best in seeking to move forward.”
