Victoria Sharks hosted the Kitgum Lions at the Kyadondo Rugby Grounds in their last Uganda Cup pool phase game.
The Sharks started their campaign with a walkover win against the Elgon Wolves in Mbale, but tragedy befell them in the second round when they visited the Makerere Rugby Grounds, also known as the Graveyard. A 24-19 loss, followed by a 35-17 loss to the Heathens, has left the Sharks turning to Lady Luck for good fortune.
Currently seated in second place in Pool D, the Sharks hope that Impis lose when they travel to Kitgum next week, if they are to proceed to the knock-out stages of the competition.
But first, the Sharks had to take care of their business against Kitgum Lions on Saturday before interesting themselves in the result from the following weekend.
The game got off to a disastrous start for the Victoria Sharks. Winger Stephen Kalema attempted a quick line-out throw-in, but the ball was intercepted by the oncoming Kitgum, who went ahead to score their first and only converted try (by Emmanuel Omara) in the first minute of the game. This try by Okema resulted from a deliberate strategy by the Kitgum Lions.
“It was a tough game, but by halftime, we had actually held the Victoria Sharks. We had a game plan, we knew how the sharks play; when you put pressure on them in their half, they panic and make mistakes,” noted Emmanuel Omara, the captain of the Lions, after the game.
The Sharks immediately responded through a Saul Kivumbi try that was converted by scrumhalf Andrew Mumbere. Mumbere added one more conversion and received heaps of praise from his captain, Paul Epill,o after the game.
“We have boys who are coming through, especially Andrew Mumbere, who has been an important cog at number 9 in the absence of the experienced Davis Kyewalabye,” he noted.
The Kitgum Lions continued with their kicking game, keeping the Sharks on the back foot. This strategy was quickly noticed and countered by the Sharks’ coaching bench.
“We noticed that every time they kicked, they wouldn’t have anyone covering the backfield. The coach told us that every time we look and there is no one behind, we boot and put pressure on them. I am glad that it worked and gave us a few tries,” noted Epillo, who almost became a beneficiary of this plan when the Sharks put on a good kick and chase, with the captain regathering and nearly running to the try line.
Although the Kitgum Lions lost 54-07, they are still hopeful of a good result in their final game of the pool phase
“I am super proud of the boys; they put up a good shift. We hope to bounce back better in the next game at home, when we host Impis in Kitgum. When you look at Impis, they are more of a kicking team. We as Kitgum Lions are going to go back to the drawing board and see the proper approach to that game,” noted Captain Omara.
The Victoria Sharks will definitely be following the proceedings in Kitgum next Saturday, hoping for a Uganda Cup Miracle.