HSBC Sevens: Rugby Cranes eye improvement

KAMPALA. The Rugby Cranes managed 14th place out of 16 on their HSBC World Series debut in Dubai last weekend, finishing above seasonal participants Japan and Russia, winning applauds from the rugby world for the spirited displays they put up.
They have a chance to go one better tomorrow when they line up against Wales, Samoa and Scotland in pool D of the Cape Town leg. Despite becoming the new darlings of the shorter version of the game, Uganda are aware that they can better Dubai’s performance.

“In Dubai we kept improving each game, in Cape Town we want to push for more because the potential is there and all the boys are interested in learning more,” coach Tolbert Onyango told Daily Monitor.
“We have focused on receiving kickoffs because we struggled in that area during the Dubai leg,” he added.

Fiji bromance
The side has also got themselves new friends in Fiji, the Olympics gold medallists and sevens power houses. After sharing a dressing room in Dubai, they have gone ahead to train together in ahead of tomorrow’s showdown.
“We are learning a lot from the best in the world, they keep advising us on how to play the game and it gets no better than dealing with the best in the business,” said Michael Wokorach from the side`s base in Cape Town.

Fiji themselves hail from humble backgrounds, something they share with their Ugandan counterparts and Wokorach, the most experienced player in the Cranes camp, believes it has been the key to the closeness that might elevate sevens rugby in Uganda to the next level.
“They understand where we are coming from and they appreciate the energy and determination we put in when playing,” he reasoned.
The side returns to Uganda on Monday and will rest for a fortnight before resuming training with their respective clubs with next years’ Hong Kong Sevens in mind.
[email protected]