The fourth round of the National Nile Special 7s rugby championship will take centre stage in Gulu this weekend. Between September 7 and 8, at the Pece stadium, both men and women's teams will be battling for honours.
For the men's competition, Heathens, Pirates, Rhinos, Kobs, Walukuba, Plascon Mongers, and the Buffaloes have given each other a real run for their money. They have been separated by fine margins in the three previous rounds.
In turn, for the women, it has been a two-way fight between the Bweyogerere-based Black Pearls and the Avengers from Entebbe. Like last year's 7s championship, that the Pearls won easily, they began this year's edition with a bang, comfortably winning the Entebbe circuit.
However, the Avengers have bounced back stark-raving mad, beating the Pearls in both the Mbale and Kyadondo circuits, much to the surprise of many.
"We have been watching a lot of videos from the past games against the Pearls, and we figured out what they did to beat us. They were good on defence compared to us. And each time they stopped our flow at the breakdown, they easily turned over the ball and walked through us," Peace Lekuru of the Avengers said.
Lekuru, who is the Lady Rugby Cranes skipper for both the 15s and 7s side, was the Most Valuable Player in the recent 7s circuit played at Kyadondo. And this was was largely because of the class-act she was, not only in the final against the Pearls, but through the two-day tournament.
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Few would contest the fact that she is undeniably the best female player in the country, something she has even shown in international competitions. Yet, it should be noted that her displays have also gone a long way in improving those around her. It goes without saying that her team has been in the shadow of the Pearls, and when they lost the first circuit final in front of their home fans, something had to give.
The Pearls followed up with their dominance of them from last year, and they just did not seem to have the mindset to shift the balance. But after winning the last two circuits, the Avengers look the more psychologically prepared for battle. Incidentally, the two teams comprise of the biggest number of national team players.
This has made their clashes even the more exciting and intense. There is every expectation that even this weekend, they will be meeting in the final. Last year, the Avengers only won two of the seven circuits. Pearls won the other five. But now, the Avengers seem determined to be the new Sheriffs in town, as women's rugby builds a new rivalry to savour.
