Emerging forward James Bogere delivered late heroics once again, firing an 89th-minute strike to earn the Uganda Cranes a 1-1 draw against the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in an international friendly at the FNB Stadium on Monday, October 5, 2026.
The stalemate completed a successful two-match expedition in Johannesburg for Uganda, following their 2-0 victory over the same opponent at the same venue three days earlier.
After a scoreless opening half where clear chances remained at a premium, the Cranes came agonizingly close to breaking the deadlock in the 49th minute when forward Arnold Vula fired wide from point-blank range inside the penalty box.
The Leopards, ranked 41st in the world according to the latest FIFA rankings, dominated possession in the middle third and made their breakthrough in the 69th minute. Forward Nathanael Mbuku Wa Mbuku, who plies his trade with Sint-Truiden in Belgium, intercepted an errant pass from defender Arnold Odong before driving a clinical 20-yard low finish past Cranes goalkeeper Kingdom Osayi.
Seeking an offensive spark, the Uganda Cranes technical bench orchestrated a raft of tactical substitutions across the second half, introducing Travis Mutyaba, Frank Ssebufu, Joseph Seremba, Geofrey Lubanga Kene, Denis Omedi, and James Bogere.
The adjustments yielded dividends with barely a minute left of normal time. Omedi collected possession in transition and slipped a pinpoint pass into space for Bogere, who controlled and unleashed a fierce strike past Congolese custodian Dimitry Bertaud into the back of the net.
The goal marked the 18-year-old’s second senior international goal in the span of four days, having also found the net alongside Kevin Boateng during Uganda’s 2-0 triumph over the Congolese side on October 2.
The two-match window also served as a proving ground for several new faces in the national setup, with head coach Paul Put handing senior debut caps to goalkeeper Kingdom Osayi, Gaucho Dehohi, Sadam Masereka, Souleymane Diaby, and Geofrey Lubanga Kene.
The resilient showing against a Congolese side ranked 48 places above the Cranes (89th) provides positive momentum as Uganda fine-tunes its squad ahead of upcoming continental qualifiers.
