UJ REIGN SUPREME IN 2021 KINGS OF AFRICA KAMPALA 7S RUGBY TOURNAMENT
UJ 7s rugby men’s team celebrate winning the 2021 Kings of Africa Kampala 7s tournament in Uganda.
teams from Kenya, Lybia, South Africa and Uganda, combined. The South African teams had to acclimatise to the different weather, altitude, culture and time zone swiftly before their matches commenced in earnest. Both teams delivered great performances, with the men’s team winning the tournament and the women’s team finishing in second position. On day one, the UJ men led the way winning the opening match of the tournament against Jomo Kenyatta University of Science and Tech with a 29-07 final score. The ladies followed suit with a 18-05 win over the hosts, Makerere University ladies. Having spent the day on the field, the teams battled with humidity, forcing them to hydrate frequently during the matches. However, this did not stop the UJ teams from playing well. Both teams advanced to the playoffs on day
two, Sunday 10 October. The men’s side continued to cruise through the stages, winning their games comfortably. They then won against home-country rivals, Stellenbosch University (Maties) in the final. The ladies final also saw two South African teams face off on foreign territory when they played UP-Tuks. “We started off slowly, but we managed to pick up our momentum. I am proud of the ladies because we fought until the end, and it paid off. It was an amazing tournament and experience, equipping us as the team with skills and knowledge that we can implement going forward to improve ourselves”, said Masingita Simango, captain: UJ 7s women’s team. Knowing what was at stake, the men’s final game was never an easy one as both teams had their eyes on the prize of qualifying for the University 7s world cup in Russia
The fast and tough University of Johannesburg (UJ) men’s sevens rugby team has claimed the second consecutive coveted Kings of Africa Kampala 7s rugby tournament on Sunday, 10 October 2021. The UJ women’s 7s team settled for a silver medal after the University of Pretoria (UP-Tuks) women’s 7s team claimed their maiden trophy of the tournament. The Federation of Africa University Sports (FASU) inaugurated the Kings of Africa Kampala 7s tournament in 2019. The UJ men’s team has since won the two installations. In 2020, the tournament did not take place due to the COVID-19 global pandemic. Both UJ men’s and women’s teams departed for Uganda on Friday, 7 October, to participate in the tournament. The women’s team was participating for the first time.
The tournament comprised 17
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ALUMNI IMPUMELELO
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