The Uganda Rugby Cranes 7s returned to Mauritius with the mission to retain the Rugby Africa 7s title, but it wasn’t to be.
The four-time champions showed early signs of a side in rebuild on Day 1, when they lost their first match of the day against Ghana. This was the first of three losses that the Cranes were to face, with the other two coming from Kenya and South Africa, respectively.
The team that is a blend of experienced players and emerging talents had one job; to defend their title, or at the very least, qualify for the World Rugby Series Division 3, a spot that was claimed by losing finalists, Madagascar.
The cranes have been a mainstay in the Challenger Series, which was the second tier of the World Rugby 7s Series, but cracking that seal to gain promotion had become a permanent challenge.
Failure to qualify for Division 3 means that the team management has enough time to go back to the drawing board and restrategize on the way forward. With the revolving door in the 7s program ever rotating of late, we may be having the last of the seasoned campaigners like Dennis Etwau, Nobert Sexton Okeny and Alex Aturinda.
This, on a brighter note, opens up opportunities for players like Karim Arinaitwe, Aaron Tukei and Roy Kizito to lead the pack, while for recent additions like Malcom Okello, who was the top points scorer of the tournament with 41 points, this is a chance to announce themselves on the international stage.
The question remains on how the team is going to prepare for future tournaments, with the Safari 7s likely to happen in October, being the best next opportunity to press out a few creases here and there, on a more competitive level.
Summary of Results
- Uganda 07-17 Ghana
- Uganda 43-00 Ivory Coast
- Uganda 05-12 Kenya
- Uganda 00-26 South Africa
- Uganda 47-07 Ghana
- Uganda 24-05 Zambia