We earn hard-fought point on the road in season opener after Innocent Media’s early goal gave us a dream start to our 2025/26 StarTimes Uganda Premier League campaign, but hosts URA FC came from behind to force a 1-1 draw in a lively contest at Hamz Stadium in Nakivubo.
Media opened his account for NEC in just the 10th minute, tapping home from close range after a sweeping team move saw Joseph Dhata deliver a beautifully weighed cross putting the us in an early lead.
The goal was a product of composure and teamwork, as NEC moved the ball with precision through midfield before Dhata found his fellow countryman Media in space inside the box. The striker made no mistake with the finish, giving us the lead with our first goal of the new campaign.
Moments later, Media nearly had a spectacular second after beating both his marker and the goalkeeper, only to see his chipped effort land just over the bar in the 17th minute.
The hosts, searching for their first win after drawing their opening fixture, grew into the match, we also kept piling pressure with several long-range efforts from Geriga and Waibi both missing the target. The latter proved to be URA’s most dangerous threat, hitting the bar in the first half and going inches wide with another low drive.
Despite the pressure, NEC went into the halftime break with a slender lead 1-0 which would have easily been more than that.
URA levelled the score early in the second half, with Moses Aliro heading home from a corner to make it 1-1, a goal that shifted the momentum and made the game more of an end-to-end encounter.
Hannington Ssebwalunyo, was called into action shortly after and delivered a stunning double save to deny the hosts from taking the lead a moment that kept us in the match
Hussein Mbalangu looked to freshen things up with the introduction of Mucureezi and Jarieko, replacing Dhata and Waibi respectively. Mucureezi nearly made an immediate impact with a well-taken free kick that clipped the crossbar in the 75th minute. He later saw a header saved and another effort sail over as NEC pushed for a late winner.
In the end, both sides settled for a share of the spoils in a match full of chances.
What it means
We take a point from our opening fixture, as we head into the international break while URA, it’s a second successive draw to start their campaign.
Up Next
We return home to host Police FC in Matchday 3 as we look to build on this solid start and chase our first three points of the season, date and time to be confirmed and to be played at MTN Omondi Stadium – Lugogo.