History always finds a way to repeat itself. Somehow. In the 2022 series last year, Pirates finished tenth during the first-ever Tooro 7s circuit. Since it was a one-day circuit, the Sea Robbers’ tournament had already ended by noon.
This year, in the 2023 series, the highest-possible finish Heathens can achieve is ninth. They will play for points in the Challenge Cup since it is now a two-day circuit.
From early in the week, the pool draws looked like something unusual was going to happen. And so it did.
The first round went without incident but there was a hint of what was to come later in the day when Impis beat Rhinos, 12-07, in Pool A.
In the second round, bottom seed Warriors beat Mongers by 19-17 to blow Pool D wide open. Then from Pool A, Impis sent shockwaves around Buhinga Stadium by beating Heathens, 21-20, and booking their slot in the Cup quarterfinals.
Enter round three. Mongers beat Hippos, 10-05, to keep their hopes alive in Pool D. Pool B went as expected: Kobs and Rams walked into the Cup quarterfinals. However, what wasn’t expected was that the latter would top the pool. Rams shocked the 2022 Tooro 7s champions by 07-05.
The mother of all upsets, though, was delivered by Rhinos who scored three quick tries against Heathens to lead 17-00 in the first half. Heathens’ comeback was in vain as Rhinos held on for a shocking 17-10 win to send the Rujumba 7s champions packing.
Day Two will certainly not surpass the bar set during the pool stage. But it could put the cherry on the cake when a first-time finalist in the 2023 series wins the Cup.
