Heathens raring to go, Pirates buoyant

One notable positive from the new format of the Nile Special Rugby Championships is its unpredictability, which kept the fans on the edge of their seats until the final day of the regular season.

More drama is expected into the playoffs especially after a section of club chairmen protested in their shared WhatsApp group with the Union (URU) over the decision to hand the quarter final second-leg home advantage to the bottom four of the eight.

The Uganda Rugby Union reacted with an impulsive response withdrawing the earlier fixtures and drawing a new one to meet the demands. The Kobs-Mongers game that was initially scheduled for Friday was pushed to Saturday in Entebbe.

More surprises are expected as the playoffs offer a clean slate for any of the remaining eight teams to dream big.

Outright favourites

While the big three – Heathens, Kobs, and Pirates – remain outright favorites, they will keep an eye on Jinja Hippos who disrupted their status quo to break into the top three.

All the four beat their quarterfinal opponents in the regular season.

The Hippos, who finished second, were also the only side that matched Heathens’ near-perfect machine on the pitch. Hippos play Buffaloes.

The sixteen-time champions (Heathens) were invincible in the first phase but are wary of the challenge ahead.

They travel to Jinja to face the Walukuba Barbarians who were arguably the most-exciting team to watch.

Heathens captain Michael Wokorach has fresh memories of their narrow escape at Walukuba on March 9 where their other Michael, Omollo’s last-minute try came to the rescue in the 21-17 win.

“We almost lost to Walukuba but that was a good wake-up call to remind us not to underestimate anyone and finish our chances early,” Wokorach said.

“We’ve played well so far but this is a knockout where you have to bring your A-game,” he added.

Pirates strong

Speaking of A-game, the defending champions Black Pirates were not near it, finishing third and just three points ahead of Mongers in fifth.

Their playmaker Ivan Magomu acknowledges their shortfalls but is confident the team will rise to the occasion when they face Rhinos.

“We made a few mistakes that made it harder than it should’ve been but Playoff rugby is our sort of thing which we know how to handle and we’ll adjust accordingly,” Magomu said.

Nile Special Rugby Championship 

Quarterfinal first leg fixtures – Saturday at 4pm 

Mongers vs. Kobs - Entebbe

Walukuba vs. Heathens – Jinja

Buffaloes vs. Hippos – Kyadondo

Rhinos vs. Black Pirates – Legends

 How the pairs fared in the regular season

April 6: Mongers 16-21 Kobs

March 9: Walukuba 17-21 Heathens

March 16: Hippos 20-16 Buffaloes

April 6: Rhinos 11-17 Black Pirates