Betway Kobs soak it up at Gulu circuit
Take heart. Aredo (R) consoles a distraught Harunah Mohammed. PHOTO/DEUS BUGEMBE
What you need to know:
- Kobs now sit atop with 44 points, followed by Pirates at 38 while Heathens are third on 34. It’s now two circuits down and four to go with Soroti up next on Saturday.
- Guinness 7s Series result: Kobs 3 - 0 Pirates
Gulu circuit of the National Guinness 7s Series provided yet another routine Betway Kobs- Stanbic Pirates final, it’s now ten meetings in a row since 2018. This one was decided by a James Ijongat penalty taken at the death for a rare 3-0 score to extend Kobs Series lead to six points.
The weather shifted posts from humid to wet, putting in place unfriendly playing conditions. Handling errors and slips held back both sides but Pirates looked in control early on.
It got worse for Kobs when captain Joseph Aredo pulled a hamstring and limped off to be replaced by Ijongat.
Pirates had it all going well but could not deliver the killer blow. They kept going for that crosskick behind the Kobs’ defence to find the clinical Arnold Atukunda, whose pace has been the talk of the tournament.
However, it bore no fruit even with Kobs a man less after Adrian Kasito’s trip to the sinbin. Tables only turned late on as Kobs stepped up the pressure.
“Today was tough, we are trying to readjust to playing the six games a day again,” MVP Ian Munyani told Daily Monitor.
After playing six games in two days at the Mileke 7s, Gulu had it all in one after a six-hour journey. “ It’s just a thing with adjusting. Squad rotation too is key to let players rest and not to completely burn out “ added Munyani.
Kobs now sit atop with 44 points, followed by Pirates at 38 while Heathens are third on 34. It’s now two circuits down and four to go with Soroti up next on Saturday.
