Flexing muscles. Jinja Hippos are determined to wrestle local rugby dominance from the trio of Heathens, Pirates and Kobs. PHOTOS/JOHN BATANUDDE

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Fans push maturing Jinja Hippos to wade into the deeper rugby waters

What you need to know:

  • A quick scroll in the discussions on their fans WhatsApp group just shows how much they love and to what extent they can push to support their team.

There is palpable excitement as the Pearl of Africa rally which is set to run on May 6-8 edges closer.

This takes about 234 days from conception to the day a calf of a Hippopotamus or Hippo is born. During the last days of the gestation and early weeks, the mother is very aggressive and protective until he returns the calf to the herd where the father joins in providing protection from predators. 

It takes about seven years for the calf to mature and start compete for dominance with its peers and other males.

That happens for all species of hippos around the world, including the dangerous Nile Hippos found in the banks of River Nile and the Jinja Hippos Rugby Football Club, who are entering their seventh birthday, are not any different. 

During its early years of existence,  their fanbase and former players have been the mother as the executive committee members who run the club, taking the paternal roles.

Gestation and birth
After the relegation of Nile from the Uganda Rugby Premiership in 2013, several players moved to other clubs leading to its demise. 

Players such as Byron Okuba and Allan Majja joined Black Pirates, Charles Ebunyu joined Rams and current Hippos captain David Waako, Herbert duo of Magombe and Namuji went to Rams.

Others like Duncan Kirya, Gerald Wandera, Denis Wakate, Bashir Bakel and Leo Lubambula crossed to form Walukuba Barbarians based at the Abel Dhaira playground in Walukuba, Jinja.

“In 2014, the management of the Dam Waters Rugby Grounds was awarded to current Jinja Hippos chairman Jonan Manzi by the Jinja Club from Jinja Rugby Football Club,” Michael Abaaliwano, a founding member and rugby veteran, told Score.

“There were discussions with the remaining senior players of Nile like Timothy Byaruhanga, Said Torin, Derrick Mugwanya, Meddy Mapesa together with the Age-Grade Players to form a new club called Hippos,” Abaaliwano explains how the Hippos idea was conceived.

The new and ambitious Hippos found no active regional league in Eastern and, therefore, could only take part in the National Sevens series.

They took part in the subsequent 2014, 2015 and 2016 series as an invitational side largely because majority of their players were below 19 years – the minimum age for club rugby players.

Soggy’s impact
Hippos survived relegation by a whisker in their debut season in 2018, finishing ninth just a place above the relegation. They improved to a seventh finish in 2019 and were fifth by the time the Covid-19 pandemic brought the league to a premature halt in 2020.

The team expressed their ambition by going for the experienced coach Robert ‘Soggy’ Seguya (RIP) who taught them how to believe and set a high standard. Unfortunately, Soggy’s stint was cut short after a battle with acute cancer that later claimed his life.

The blueprint he left behind will guide the team for a long time and that has been evident this season. A false start led to the team parting ways with Charles Onen after just a few months in charge and later his assistant Ivan Markmot, leaving forwards’ coach Sean Baldwin to handle the remaining part of the season. 

The team had lost five on the trot but regained to contain the situation and muscled back to the fourth position.

“It has been a tough journey but we’ve grown with time and gained a lot of experience. The fans have also been amazing; the best around,” club chairman Jonan Manzi says.

Breaking the trinity

“We gained a lot from the late Soggy [Robert Sseguya] and it’s a shame he isn’t alive to see that we’re still building what he made us to believe. I am sending a warning to Kobs, Pirates and Heathens that we’re coming to break the traditional dominance next season,” Manzi said with confidence.

Manzi’s words came just after Stanbic Black Pirates worked their socks off to escape Jinja with a narrow 36-33 win despite leading by 19-0 after the opening fifteen minutes.

“I have to admit that this Hippos side is making strides and made us work very hard for the win. I passed through Soggy’s hands and you can clearly see that they’re building on his legacy and they have a great and passionate fanbase; this will be a team to watch,” Pirates captain Ivan Magomu, who was man-of-the-match in that crunch tie, admits.

Ivan Magomu, Pirates captain. PHOTO/JOHN BATANUDDE
 

It may not be too long before the Hippos achieve that as they’ve already flashed a glimpse of what they possess by  providing five of the 35 players summoned to the final training of the Rugby Cranes 15s squad for the upcoming world cup qualifiers.

Only four teams including Pirates (7), Heathens (11), and Kobs with 12 have provided players from the domestic league. Only one player has been called from outside.

Motherly Fans
Being the only calf waddling in the murky  premiership waters outside the dominant central region, the fan base has often provided the atmosphere for the young Hippos to adjust its strides even on hostile away grounds.

A quick scroll in the discussions on their fans WhatsApp group just shows how much they love and to what extent they can push to support their team.

“We mobilise fans through the group and you can imagine that the fans pay their transport in advance and also collect money for motivating the players for every match regardless of the outcome [of the matches], we’re building something big.

“Some of those who can’t travel show solidarity by paying for the young ones who aren’t able,” Olga Nyakachi, one of the lead mobilisers reveals.

Emily Atukunda, in-charge of the fans welfare and treasurer reveals that on average, the fans mobilise sh. 500,000 per game.

The big leap...Open water swimming

In 2016, the Eastern Regional Rugby Union started the Eastern league which the Jinja Hippos rolled over cross-town rivals Walukuba Barbarians, Mbale Elephants and Soroti Rangers to emerge champions.

They maintained their form in the qualifier playoffs brushing aside Gulu Elephants, Impis and Mbarara University of Science and Technology at Dams Water to earn promotion to the topflight.

Profile

Team name    Jinja Hippos
Home ground    Dams Waters, Jinja
Founded    2014
Promoted    2018
Best finish    4th (2020)
Current place    4th (one game to go)
Chairman    Jonan Manzi
Captain    David Waako

League positions 

2018    9th
2019    7th
2020    5th
2022    4th*
*Season ends May 7, 2022