The reward for hard work is an opportunity to do more. Consequently, the Uganda Rugby Cranes 32-22 win over Madagascar presents them with a place in the 2010 Africa Cup and 2011 Rugby World Cup (RWC) semi-final draw to be conducted today (Friday) in Durban, South Africa.

"It was a thriller in Manila." Those were the words coaching director David Dobela used to describe the Rugby Cranes 32-22 victory over Madagascar's Markis in a 2011 Rugby World Cup and 2010 Africa Cup qualifier played Saturday.

No one said that it was going to be a walk in the park and indeed it wasn't. The Uganda Rugby Cranes were made to toil for a 32-22 win over the Markis from Madagascar's to advance to the semi-finals of the 2010 CAR Africa Cup and the group stage of the 2011 World Cup qualifiers at Kampala RFC yesterday evening.

IT turned out to be a lot closer than everyone had thought - and at times looked like the martial contests it had been likened to - but at the end the home team prevailed.

All the pre-match talk and hype will vanish in the thin air when the Uganda Rugby Cranes race on to the Kampala Rugby Football Club turf for their 2010 Africa Cup and 2011 World Cup qualifier against Madagascar today.

Madagascar is entering uncharted waters in its bid to implement ambitious projects in partnership with poor local communities that will more than triple existing conservation areas.

The head of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has launched a tetanus campaign in rural Madagascar, one of the few countries in the world that has not yet eliminated maternal and neonatal tetanus.

NOTHING major will happen if the Rugby Cranes (as expected) beat the Makis from Madagascar in a 2011 Rugby World Cup qualifier and Africa Cup game at Kampala Rugby Club on Saturday.

THE Kampala club pitch is favourable to the Rugby Cranes who will be up against Madagascar in the 2011 World Cup qualifier/CAR cup this Saturday, according to the coaching director David Dobela.

Rugby Cranes opponents for this Saturday's 2010 Africa Cup and 2011 World Cup qualifier, the Markis from Madagascar are talking big.

The head of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has lauded the Government and people of Madagascar for the progress made so far with recovery and reconstruction following the deadly cyclone that battered the Indian Ocean island nation in February.

TO millions of Madagascans, the last image they have of the Uganda Rugby Cranes is of players singing and dancing in the middle of their national stadium after that humiliating 42-11 home defeat in the final of the Africa Cup last September.

RUGBY Cranes coaching director David Dobela is impressed by his team's positive mentality ahead of this Saturday's fixture against Madagascar in Kampala.

Adrian Bukenya carries a rib injury that could rule him out of next week's 2011 IRB World Cup pre-qualifier/Confederation of African Rugby (CAR) Cup match in Kampala.

In an effort to mitigate the negative impact of climate change, new funding by European Commission's Humanitarian Aid department (ECHO) will help bolster disaster risk reduction and community resilience in Mozambique, Madagascar, Malawi and the Comoros.

It was exactly 7:34pm when referee Matthews Katjimune of Namibia flipped the coin - inscribed 'Fifa' on one side and 'Fair Play' on the other - into the air and when it landed on his palm, Madagascar were still in the Cosafa Cup and Swaziland were out.

Being an exhausted mother of 10 children by your early thirties is not unusual in rural Madagascar, but a movement is now underway to try and provide women with a contraceptive choice.

Uganda Rugby Cranes' team doctor Arthur Kwizera has confirmed that the team must negotiate the August 2 Africa Cup and 2011 World Cup qualifier against Madagascar without inspirational lock Timothy Mudoola after he tore ligaments in his right arm.