Results from Game week 12 || March 25th, 2023.
•Rhinos 08-31 Kobs
•Impis 10-32 Pirates
•Rams 11-28 Hippos
•Mongers 14-17 Buffaloes
•Walukuba 03-40 Heathens
Mongers Vs Buffaloes Scorers
Mongers: 12
Pens: Robin Odrua* 4
Yellow card: Andrew Serumaga
Buffaloes: 17
Try: Morgan Odoch
Pens: Liam Walker* 2, Wilfred Seguya* 2
Yellow card: Morgan Odoch
Player of the Match: Aturinda Ebber (Mongers)
In a tightly contested rugby match between the Mongers and Buffaloes held at the House of Pain- Busambaga, Entebbe, both teams put on a fierce display of resilience, desire, teamwork and hard-work.
The spectators were on the edge of their seats throughout the game as the two teams battled it out on the field.
The visitors, Buffaloes, would walk away with a hard-fought win of 17-12 in the end to complete a season double against the Entebbe side having won the first leg 20-19 at Kyadondo.
The game began with the Buffaloes taking control of the ball and taking the fight all the way to the Mongers’ territory, asserting their dominance from the start.
The two teams exchanged possession several times, with each side making some crucial tackles and impressive runs.
It wasn’t long before Morgan Odoch finally scored the first try of the game in favour of the travellers. With a missed conversion, they took the lead by 5-0.
Mongers , however, were not going to give up easily and fought back with all their might. They were quick to respond and managed to earn themselves a penalty which was rightly slotted between the poles by Robin Odrua to narrow the gap between the two sides to just a two points difference at 5-3.
The visitors worked their way through the Mongers defence, frustrating them and being able to earn a penalty which was successfully kicked in by Liam Walker to extend their lead to 8-3.
The two teams continued to battle it out for the remainder of the first half, Liam Walker missing a penalty for Buffaloes in course.
Two other penalties for Mongers saw them take the lead going into the break as Robin Odrua continued with his fine kicking form.
The halftime score settled at 09-08 in favour of the hosts.
In the second half, both teams came out strong, determined to take control of the game.
Liam Walker silenced the home crowd as he managed to score a penalty kick for Buffaloes in the 48th minute, taking the lead for the second time in the match at 09-11.
In the 55th minute, Mongers were a man down having had Andrew Serumaga shown a yellow card and sent to the sin bin to reflect on his behavioural decision.
The referee Gonzalo Mayanja just a minute later issued a yellow card to try scorer Morgan Odoch of Buffaloes for leading with the elbow in a carry. The call evened the numbers and contest for both sides as both teams were down to 14 men.
Mongers, with yet another successful penalty kick as Robin Odrua made it four in four for himself and again, granting Mongers the lead, 12-11. A game of fine margins it was!
Buffaloes responded ten minutes later with a successful penalty kick by fullback Wilfred Sseguya to claim the lead once again, 12-14.
This was the third time in the second half that the lead was taking a turn, and neither team was proving to take ultimate control of the scorecard.
Trailing by two points, Robin attempted to put the home side back in the lead with a penalty kick that was a little behind the fifty metre line, but he kicked a few inches wide to the left and missed for the very first time in the game.
Buffaloes, however, were not done yet, and with just seconds left to play for, Sseguya extended his team’s lead to 12-17 from a centre line penalty kick, beautifully taken to extend Buffaloes’ lead to five points.
The Mongers had no chance to bite back as the referee brought the game to its end.
In the end, it was the visitors who emerged victorious, winning the game 17-12 and while they celebrated their hard-fought victory, Mongers were left to reflect on what could have been.
“We are happy to have won away from home, we worked so hard and the result is proving. We have to celebrate the win but then we will have to put all this behind and focus on the next game,” said Buffaloes centre Ryan Mwadeghu.
“It was a thrilling game that showcased the best of rugby and it could have gone in favour of any of the teams so both teams should be proud of the effort they put in.”, he added when asked about how good their opponents were.
Buffaloes will travel to Walukuba in their next league fixture while Mongers visit the Graveyard to take on Impis.
Squads
Mongers : Ebber Aturinda, Morgan Cheche, Elijah Segawa, Remmy Omar, John Wandicho, Andrew Serumaga, Lauren Kalule(c), Joel Papi, Simon Dujang, Paul Angana, Shatiff Ibrahim, Dylan Ssewankambo, William Oketa, Robin Odrua, Hannington Mukalazi
Reserves: Isaac Katono, Bobby Bibangamba, Jackson Wako, Amos Malik, Josephat Mugisha, Brian Kimanyire, Edgar Kairu, Trevor Tumusiime.
Buffaloes: Paul Rwanyasozi, Abdul Kiyimba, Jimmy Katumba (c), Eric Tolit, Joseph Teko, David Agasi, Ivan Odoch, Douglas Musoke, Emmanuel Odong, Liam Walker, Aaron Wanyoto, Ryan Mwadeghu, Gerald Ssewankambo, Aaron Atooke, Wilfred Sseguya.
Reserves: Philip Aita, Timothy Nduhukire, Paul Sserunjogi, James Kedi, Ivan Odhiambo, Peter Juma, Isaac Egwalu, Arnold Musaazi.
