Mixed reactions have been generated upon the release of the nominees for the 2022 URU Awards dinner.
The online audience seemed to be in accord with most of the nominations, but frenzy ensued once the nominees for Male player of the year were announced.
The four man list included: Ivan Magomu (Pirates), Adrian Kasito (Kobs), Jacob Ocen (Hippos) and Aaron Ofoywroth (Heathens).
The “23 rugby fans on Twitter” seemed markedly unamused by the omission of Heathen’s Joachim Chisano from the list.
The second row forward crossed from Mongers to the Kyadondo based side at the start of the 2021/22 season where he powered the team to its record 16th league title.
Unlike most forwards who use the 7s period to take vacations and gain more weight, Chisano carried on with his stellar 15s form to the 7 man code and enabled Heathens to finish second in the series, missing out on the title by a whisker.
He equally represented Uganda on the international front in France being among the few notable performers amidst a sea of subpar players.
When asked which nominee didn’t deserve to be on the list, one of the fans blatantly said “My captain (Ivan Magomu) needs to go to the union and tell them to remove him from this list because I am sure he knows he doesn’t deserve to be there.”
Another player snubbed on the list was French based crosscode player Philip Wokorach.
The flamboyant playmaker has been the only player to represent Uganda in both the 15s and 7s variations.
He was the top points scorer at the Africa 7s held earlier in April from which Uganda emerged victorious. Fans have likened his omission to what FUFA did to former Uganda Cranes skipper Denis Onyango a few years ago.
Meanwhile, verified photojournalist Edgar Hamala expressed his dismay towards the awards for not recognising rugby photographers who have captured and documented the game all year long, riding on just pure passion for the sport.
Another fan questioned why URU spends more on a one day dinner than the contribution to clubs for a season.
It should be noted that clubs have only received a fraction of their funding for the concluded season.
However, this being the first URU Awards dinner after a long hiatus, it gives a learning experience for the consequent dinners that will come later on.
A coherent issue raised was the need to award the 15s and 7s variations separately as the URU moved to distinguish between the two earlier this year.
This awarding system is also the gold standard considered by World Rugby and an affiliate should simply borrow a leaf.
The dinner will be held this Friday at Kampala Serena Hotel and attendance is by invitation only.
Written by Emmanuel Sama
