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What's the story?
Indian Women's League (IWL) has received a big boost today in the form of two new players arriving in the country from Uganda. In what is a first for the league, Gokulam women's football team have signed two players from Uganda who will be seen in the IWL this season.
Fazila Ikwaput and Ritah Nabbosa are the two Ugandan internationals who will be representing the side from Kozhikode. Both these players have joined Gokulam from Ugandan club Olila High on a short-term deal.
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In case you didn't know...
Indian Women's League is set to take place in Shillong this year from March 25 to April 15. This is the second edition of the competition and will feature seven teams.
Gokulam women's football team is the only team from the I-League or the ISL with many other top Indian clubs backing out at the last minute. The men's team already features two Ugandan players in their ranks - Musa Mudde and Henry Kisekka.
The heart of the matter
This will be the first time out for Gokulam FC in the IWL and now will have a lot of focus on them with the double signing of Fazila Ikwaput and Ritah Nabbosa. Ikwaput is a deadly striker with an eye for goal who was also named as the Ugandan women's footballer of the year in 2017.
Nabbosa, on the other hand, is a 21-year-old midfielder whose efficient work rate has seen her climb the success ladder at a fast pace. The deal for bringing both these players to India was brokered by agent Daniel Nkata.
What next?
The seven teams in the IWL will play each other once after which the top four teams will then fight it out in the semifinals. Along with the reigning champions Eastern Sporting Union from Manipur, the main onus will now be on Gokulam FC to perform because of their two high profile signings.
Author's take
Roping in international players to the women's league in just the second edition can be said as a huge achievement for the club and the competition as a whole.
The move of Ikwaput and Nabbosa to the Indian shores will now open the floodgates for a number of African women footballers to ply their trade in the country.
