The Confederation of African Football have disqualified 11 overage players ahead of the start of the 2019 U-17 African Cup of Nations CECAFA qualifiers.
According to a communication released by Dr. Yacine Zerguini, the CAF Vice President for the Medical Commission dated August 10 and seen by KweséESPN, MRI tests have proved that certain players are overage and not eligible for the tournament.
Although CAF had asked all federations to undertake MRI tests for their players before the tournament, further tests were carried out at Muhimbili National Hospital in Dar es Salaam.
Six of the competing nations have been demonstrated to have overage players within their ranks: Burundi (Abdoul Intwari), Kenya (Maxwell Mullili, Lesley Otieno Owino and Abdulmalik Hussein Abdalla), South Sudan (Simon Pitia Alberto), Sudan (Gamel K. Abdou Kamal), Uganda (George Oluka Oluka, Joseph Kafumbe and Elvis Ngonde) and hosts Tanzania (Jafary Mtoo and Lenox Fred Chande).
"It is unfortunate for us to have three players affected," Uganda FA deputy chief executive officer, Humphrey Mandu told KweséESPN. "I can confirm that Dr. Opika Opoka carried out the MRI tests for all our players.
"The three players will return on Sunday,"
MRIs have been used by FIFA since 2003 to ensure players are eligible, by scanning the bones in their wrists.
Only one team will advance from the qualifiers for the CECAFA region to join the other continental qualifiers at the 2019 U-17 AFCON, slated for May 12-26 2019 in Tanzania.
Apart from the hosts, each of the six zones receive one spot in the final tournament, and the zone of the defending champions [West A zone] receive an additional spot.
The top three teams at the 2019 tournament qualify for U-17 World Cup in Peru next year.