Pius Ogena and Peace Lekuru stole the spotlight of the night as they were crowned MVP Men and Women respectively at the prestigious 2023 URU Awards.
Peace’s victory was expected, but Ogena managed to surpass Pirates’ Timothy Kisiga and Sidney Gongodyo to claim the ultimate honour.
Despite KOBs not achieving any major accolades this year, it didn’t hinder Ogena from delivering exceptional performances, resulting in an impressive tally of 22 league tries.
His outstanding performance even earned him a spot back on the national 7s team after previously being dropped.
The winners of the night were generously rewarded with “fat envelopes” as a token of appreciation for their remarkable contributions.
Additionally, the URU president acknowledged and honoured all the captains who have led both the national 7s and 15s teams throughout the years.
Some voices advocated for grander rewards for the winners, such as luxurious gifts like cars. With the sponsor present at the event, anticipation builds for what next year’s awards might bring.
In her absence, Winnie Atyang received recognition from Nile Special for her significant contributions to women’s rugby development.
Atyang has served as captain for both the national lady rugby cranes and Thunderbirds teams while also dedicating herself to coaching and nurturing female players at Kyadondo.
Yayiro Kasasa, who has dedicated years of service to Ugandan rugby, was finally acknowledged with a lifetime achievement award.
Kasasa’s involvement in Ugandan rugby extends beyond his role as a player; he has also excelled as a coach and administrator in recent years.
After a hiatus, the URU Awards made a triumphant return last year with Adrian Kasito and Peace Lekuru taking center stage.
Since then, there have been calls to refine award categories to encompass other individuals serving Ugandan rugby in various capacities.
This led to the introduction of categories such as Journalist of the Year-Digital and Photographer of the Year.
However, controversies are inevitable in any awards ceremony. In the 2014 Grammy Awards, Macklemore controversially won Best Rap Album over Kendrick Lamar.
While The Heist was a commendable album, GKMC was undeniably a masterpiece, making it one of the most disputed wins in awards history.
Similarly, on Saturday night, Ernest Akorebirungi lost Journalist of the Year – Digital to Next Media’s Grace Mbabazi.
We do not undermine Mbabazi’s contributions to rugby; however, Akorebirungi, as a full-time rugby writer who has dedicated his entire career to covering and documenting rugby, seemed more deserving of the accolade. But as they say in Uganda, “eyawangula siyafugga.”
There have also been demands for URU to align its awards with the format used by World Rugby to standardize them. Categories like International and Domestic Coach lack coherence.
If these categories are to be maintained, then they should be evenly distributed across the awards.
The domestic coach category boasts a pool of over 30 coaches to choose from, while the International Coach category only has five contenders—a significantly smaller sample size for evaluation.
However, a sensible and effective approach would be to distinguish between 7s and 15s by awarding them separately.
Late last year, URU made a bold decision by encouraging players to specialize either in 7s or 15s. If this specialization is embraced, it should also reflect in the awards system.
Ivan Magomu missed out on an MVP nomination because he exclusively plays 15s as a specialist while all other nominees have played in both formats.
By recognizing these variations within the game, we can truly appreciate each player’s unique contributions.
Full Winners list
- Upcoming Player men- Shakim Ssembusi
- Upcoming player women- Grace Nabaggala
- Referee of year- Umar Balikanda
- Top Try scorer- Pius Ogena
- Top Try scorer women- Emily Lekuru
- MVP men- Pius Ogena
- MVP Women- Peace Lekuru
- Coach of the year domestic- Marvin Odong
- Coach of the year international- Fred Mudoola
- Team Manager of the year- Micheal Wandera
- Journalist of th eyear print- Faith Kiai
- Journalist of the year (radio, TV)- John Torach
- Journalist of the year digital- Grace Mbabazi
- Photographer of the year- Hasaan Wamwayi
- NS Special Award- Winnie Atyang for dvt of womens rugby
- Presidential award for dvt- Traton Nyakato (For dvt of rugby in the west)
- Fair Play- Jinja Hippos
- Golden Boot- Ivan Magomu
- Golden Boot- Charlotte Mudoola
Courtesy Photos
