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English Dubai Emirates 7s: New Faces And Notable Misses As The Uganda Rugby 7s Squad Is Announced.
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The Uganda Rugby 7s at the Rugby Africa 7s Cup 2022 Photo by Rugby Afrique/URU
This morning, the Uganda Rugby Union 7s management team has announced the 14 man squad to represent Uganda in the Dubai and Cape Town Rugby 7s respectively.
A provisional 20 man squad was summoned after the National Rugby 7s season from which the final 14 have been selected. The 14 lads have been charged with the duty to represent Uganda at the Dubai 7s from 2nd to 3rd December and Cape Town 7s from 9th to 11th December.
The Uganda Rugby 7s Cranes failed to attain core status in the HSBC World Rugby 7s Series, thus playing as an invitational side at both circuits. Although known for an exciting brand of rugby and being crowd favourites, the Cranes have always fallen short when it matters most.
Notable Omissions
The most notable miss from the squad is French based fancy feet, Philip Wokorach. The ASBC fullback has been a loyal servant whenever called upon, providing memorable reels to last for eternity. He won’t be available as the French Nationale 2 league is currently on going.
Claude Otema, a relatively a new face on the team, is out with injury, whereas Norbert Okeny’s omission is unknown.
The Seasoned Campaigners
Of the selected 14, 9 are familiar faces, providing the core of the team. Team captain Michael Wokorach and his deputy Ian Munyani are both in the squad. With Ian sited to be the next skipper, these tournaments are providing valuable experience for his individual and leadership skills.
The others are Aaron Ofoyrwoth, Adrian Kasito, Alex Aturinda, Desire Ayera, Karim Arinaitwe, Timoth Kisiga and William Nkore.
The New Faces
The Jinja Hippos account for the largest part ofthis contigent. These are; Jacob Ocen, Tawfik Bagalana, Timothy Mugisha and Denis Etwau. Mubarak Wandera, who captained the Black Pirates in the recently concluded National 7s is the other young lad to make the cut, on his first knock at the door.
Roy Bath Kizito, Arnold Atukunda and Aron Tukei were however not as lucky. This still have time to evolve and a part to play in the future of 7s rugby in Uganda.
The Fixtures
The Uganda Rugby 7s Cranes find themselves in Pool C with France, Ireland and Spain.
Friday, 2nd December, 2022
France Vs Uganda – 9:28am
Ireland Vs Uganda – 1:36 pm
Spain Vs Uganda – 6:07pm
The Squad
Alex Atukunda, Ian Munyani, William Nkore, Michael Wokorach, Desire Ayera, Aaron Ofoywroth, Adrian Kasito, Timothy Kisiga, Karim Arinaitwe, Dennis Etwau, Timothy Mugisha, Jacob Ocen, Tawfik Bagalana, Mubarak Wandera.
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