AFTER congesting this year’s calendar with several international tournaments, the local rugby federation (RRF) is optimistic that Rwanda will reap big from the tight schedule. “The whole idea is to give local players more room to gauge themselves with our more experienced and skilled Ugandan and Kenyan neighbors,” one RRF official said. Some of the events include; Castle Beer Super 16, CAR international 7s, Tusker Safari 7s, Kyadondo 7s, Kabeberi 7s and Hima-Mak 10s among others. Meanwhile, domestic competitions on the calendar include; the Super League, Schools league, Under-14 league, 10-aside tournament and the women’s league. Last year, Remera Buffalos gave Rwanda some thing to brag about after stunning East African rugby giants Kenya in the Priscloo Nakuru 7s tournament. The national league champions who walked into the tournament as one of the underdogs made headlines when they dislodged top Kenyan sides to storm the semi-finals of the two-day event. Buffaloes thumped Daystar University 26-0 and Africa Nazarene University 19-7 at the preliminary stage before rounding off a 15-0 win over Kabarak University in the quarter-finals. Buffaloes’ fairy tale run came to an end when they lost to Jommo Kenyatta University (JKUAT) 26-7 but for RRF first vice president Alex Araire, Buffaloes had proved a point. “The players were fantastic. Getting to the semi-finals against more experienced Kenyan clubs is a great milestone. They did us (Rwanda) proud and we hope that they (Buffaloes) will carry on with the same tempo in future tournaments,” he said. Ends
