The famous rugby adage, “Forwards win you games, Backs determine by how much”, came to life last Saturday when Heathens defeated Black Pirates.
Despite the Pirates having the superior forwards pack both in the starting line-up and on the bench, the Heathens forwards withstood that onslaught with hard work and humility.
It took a slow start, characterised by a couple of lost scrums for the Heathens forwards to wake up. “The forwards showed up. For the first few minutes, they veered off the plan a bit, then they recovered,” noted Heathens forwards coach Alex Mubiru after the game.
For the first try of the game, newly signed forward Jude Jjuuko applied pressure on the Pirates before Sylvester Munguacel ripped the ball and laid it off to Aaron Ofoyrwoth. This moment of magic from a youngster like Munguacel is what the legendary Mubiru described as ‘a work in progress’. “Most of these guys are young boys. They haven’t yet amassed some good experience, and that’s why they need to step up during this round of fixtures.”
The set piece
Using an eye test, the Heathens were the lighter pack of the two. Despite conceding multiple scrum penalties and losing possession on a few lineouts, the Heathens pack managed to set an attacking platform for the backs.
Malcom Okello’s try came off a set play on Heathens’ scrum, while Norbert Okeny’s try came after a lineout.
On the success of Heathens’ lineouts, coach Mubiru noted that there was nothing extraordinary involved.
“We are just keeping it simple. A lineout is a throw, a jump and a lift. For me, rugby is a simple game; just keep it simple, and that’s what the boys did. In the line out, the ultimate aim is to get your ball; if you can strike off it, the better, if you can’t, then send it out to the backline.”
The Pirates had a better recollection rate off the lineout, especially with the 6 ball, giving no chance to Julius Opio or Joshua Kafugakande to steal the ball. For their efforts, they managed to score two tries from the lineouts, first through Eliphaz Emong in the first half, then through Alex Aturinda after a maul in the second half.
Lots of questions are yet to be answered on that Heathens scrum, but one thing Mubiru is certain of is that this is just the beginning.
“We are building our scrum. Most of these boys are young, and it is work in progress, as I’ve said. I firmly believe that these boys are going to stand up going forward,” he noted.