Uganda has grown leaps and bounds in international Sevens rugby. It’s evident from how the news of a sixth-place finish at the World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series 2022 in Santiago, Chile has been received. Not high enough, could have certainly been better.
Perhaps the consolation could be that it is one place higher than they performed at the inaugural Challenger Series two years ago in Chile and Uruguay.
But that’s what the team was able to achieve this year in what will go down in history as a painful so-close-yet-so-far quest to become a core World Series outfit.
The Uganda Men’s Sevens lost, 12-07, to Hong Kong during their last match at the Estadio Santa Laura in the 5/6th place semifinal.
Hong Kong forced Uganda to possess the ball deep in their territory throughout the match; which pressure led to errors with ball in hand.
They reaped dividends through M. Woodward and H. Sayers’ tries in the first half. Philip Wokorach scored Uganda’s lone try from a loose ball by Hong Kong midway through the second half.
For an umpteenth time, Wokorach was Uganda’s top scorer with six tries and thirteen conversions to his name. The other try scorers for Uganda were Ian Munyani (3), Aaron Ofoywroth, Timothy Kisiga, and Michael Wokorach (2), and Adrian Kasito (1).
All players, except youngster Karim Arinaitwe and Nobert Okeny got some game time in Chile.
The lads can now rest and recover for a few days in which they will fly back home and shift focus to the Rugby World Cup Sevens 2022 just 25 days away in Cape Town, South Africa.