Rugby: Chaos rocks Kobs, Warriors league encounter

Ugly: Fans restraining Kobs player Adnan Mutebi from getting involved in more trouble at Legends. Photo by EDDIE CHICCO

What you need to know:

  • Rugby. The disciplinary committee could be forced to use video evidence to reign in on the chaos that erupted at Legends.
  • Kobs player Adnan Mutebi and Warriors assistant coach Gabriel Aredo had to be separated.

Kampala. Betway Kobs subjected DusuPay Warriors to their second loss of the campaign. But not without a fuss. The scoreboard read 28-03 at fulltime, and going by what took place on the pitch, many would be deceived by the result.
Kobs laboured, hard tackles on the pitch came flying and off it, sadly, a fistfight broke out between a Kobs player and a Warriors official, before a number of bodies got involved to either add fuel to the fire, or put it out.
On the pitch, Kobs lost Pius Ogena to an ankle injury. Some in the Kobs circles claim that Warriors injured him on purpose, because they knew he has a history of a bad ankle. Kobs led 10-00 at halftime. Not a safe scoreline, especially against a team so spirited like Warriors.
Warriors returned from the breather energized and held Kobs for some periods, until when referee Denis Anguyo sent flyhalf Henry Musisi to the sinbin, the first of three Warriors players to exit the pitch under the powers of a yellow card, meaning that Warriors played only 50 minutes with a full team.
At one time, eighth man Philip Muhoozi and center Nelson Mandela were seated side-by-side in the sinbin.

Chaos
Many argued that Anguyo had a forgettable outing, and this rubbed Warriors the wrong way. When Warriors’ prop Victor Wangobo got stretchered off with a knee injury, his teammate Ahmed Oduka also went down with a muscle strain, near the Kobs bench.
Gabriel Aredo, the Warriors assistant coach, came to check on him. Kobs fans allegedly booed him, an exchange of words ensued and in a blink of an eye, Adnan Mutebi, the Kobs prop, who was watching from the terraces, climbed down and a fight with Aredo broke out.
In a video shot and released by Kratos Sports, Kobs coach Fred Mudoola is seen coming in but gets pulled out by his player Ibrahim Nyango and Kobs team manager, Andrew Ikopit.
“I had gone to check on my player (Oduka) because at that time, our medic had escorted Wangobo to the ambulance. (Adnan) Mutebi poured beer on me and when I asked why, he came down the stairs and that is how trouble started,” argues Aredo.
“Aredo had no business crossing over to our side and exchanging words with our fans and bench. As a coach, he should be knowing that. First, I sent Ikopit to tell him to go back to his side and he became unruly. When I went there, he was all charging towards me. In fact in that chaos, one Warriors slapped me. I didn’t fight anyone,” says Mudoola.
By press time, there was no ready information on if the match commissioner had captured the incident for further scrutiny from the URU disciplinary committee.

SATURDAY RESULTS
Kobs 28-03 Warriors
Rhinos 64-05 Barbarians
Rams 3-39 Heathens
Hippos 24-12 Mongers
Buffaloes 00-30 Pirates