Capital Night end Roxberry winning run
Ian Kazibwe of Capital Night focuses to clear the table of the yellows. The national team player was in imperious form against Roxberry winning all his four frames. PHOTO/GEORGE KATONGOLE
What you need to know:
In a thrilling Eastern derby, visiting Tororo Tigers secured their first-ever win over Mbale, defeating them 11-9 in a tightly contested match at Oak Bar. The game, which concluded around 10PM, was marked by intense competition and mind games.
Title favourites Roxberry suffered their first loss of the season after losing 11-9 to Capital Night on Sunday.
In a tightly-contested game, youngster Farouk Mutumba gave Capital Night the lead with a win over Azali Lukomwa while Ian Kazibwe, who was on fire, brought down the house with a break-and-finish. Capital night's perfect start was dented by two losses by Mark Mukiibi and Roland Zzimula against Simon Lubuulwa and Joseph Kasozi.
Roxberry seemed like they were going to dominate again with their skipper Ibrah Ssejjemba racking in the third frame beating his former teammate William Kanyesigye. Mutumba added an A with Kazibwe and Mukiibi winning their respective frames as the game went into a break tied at 5-5.
The home crowd was growing impatient when the second round resumed and it was all roses as Lukomwa won his first game of the evening against Mukiibi. However, the momentum shifted dramatically when Jonathan Ouma replaced Robert Tumusiime. Ouma suffered two consecutive losses, while Ian Kazibwe continued to torment the home side with four consecutive wins.
The victory was a crucial three points for Capital Night, the two-time champions, who move into tenth-place while Roxberry dropped to third with 26 points - three shy of new leaders Upper Volta.
Speaking after the victory, Kazibwe said his side deserved the victory.
"We were prepared for this game and for sure we deserved all the three points," Kazibwe, who was eliminated from the on-going National Open qualifiers, said.
The loss ends an impressive 8-match unbeaten run as Roxberry's blistering form this season got a big scare.
This was one of the poorest performances from Roxberry as Ssejjemba won just one frame all evening.
Ssejjemba noted that they knew they could stumble at some point.
"In sport, anything can happen. Of course we have lost this game but you never know what is going to happen in the remaining games. Our sights are still on winning the title," he said.
In other matches, Upper Volta, playing without key players Ceasar Chandiga and Rashid Wagaba, secured a bonus-point victory over Kireka. This win propelled Upper Volta to the top of the standings. Meanwhile, Scrap Buyers climbed to second place with a convincing 17-3 win over struggling Nakawa.
Tororo edge Mbale in derby
In a thrilling Eastern derby, visiting Tororo Tigers secured their first-ever win over Mbale, defeating them 11-9 in a tightly contested match at Oak Bar. The game, which concluded around 10PM, was marked by intense competition and mind games.
Despite Mbale's late arrival at their home ground, the tension was palpable from the outset. The match was briefly interrupted in the third quarter as Tororo accused their opponents of violating the dress code.
Jonah Turigye and Nasuru Nabudere led the scoring charge for Mbale, each contributing three goals. However, their efforts were not enough to overcome Tororo's strong showing. Caleb Muhire and Bruce Abahairwe played crucial roles in canceling out Mbale's home advantage. Abdul Namagu and Bashir Kanakulya added two goals each for Tororo.
Although Mbale managed to tie the score at 5-5 at halftime, Tororo's dominance in the second half sealed the deal.
Nile Special National Pool League
Weekend results – men
Roxberry 9-11 capital Night
Nakawa 3-17 Scrap Buyers
Kireka 6-14 Upper Volta
Wakiso City 10-10 Sinkers
Club 408 7-13 Greater Mukono
Adi's 11-9 E-play
Corporate Shooters 12-8 Pot It
Mbale 9-11 Tororo Tigers
