Old Miltonians revel in glory

AFTER leading Old Miltonians (OMs) to history on Saturday at Hartsfield Rugby Grounds, winning the 2024 Bulawayo Metropolitan Rugby Football Board (BMRFB) Archer Clothing Rugby League, skipper Innocent Ncube believes that this is just the beginning of the old boys’ dominance.

The old boys, OMs defied the odds as they beat nemesis Matabeleland Warriors 16-13 in the final to finally land their hands on the coveted title after years of heartbreaks and near-misses.

It wasn’t the best of starts for OMs in the final, losing a couple of their seasoned campaigners to shoulder injuries early on in the first half but the grit and dedication shown by the youngsters was a reason to smile for Ncube.

Ncube added that from now on, there is no backing down.

“We are very proud because we lost our best two guys inside the first 10 minutes. The rookies came in but nothing changed, we kept the game going up until the 80th minute, up until the extra minute. So, for us as OMs, we are still going up, we will not go down. Even with the youngsters, we were strong.

“I always tell the boys to keep working and keep training. Nothing will ever beat training, keep training and the results will show. As OMs, we believe in working hard, work hard and results will surely come out. The future looks great, even next year, we will retain the trophy. We have our eyes set on national domination,” said Ncube.

OMs dominated the league from the first match of the campaign and went on to finish the round-robin stage at the top of the standings. They would brush aside Highlanders 60-3 in the semifinals to set up a final date against the Warriors.

Saturday’s final was extended to extra time after scores were tied at 13-13 at the end of the 80 minutes. With a golden point needed to separate the two giants of local rugby, it was OMs who scored a penalty to make it 16-13 and land their hand on the silverware.

OMs’ director of rugby, Nelson Madida concurs with his skipper and believes that their institution transcends the rugby field. He said that they are hoping to create more memories like the ones they did on Saturday.

“We are excited. We want to savour this moment and hope to create something after this. I know people look at rugby as just a sport that’s played on the field, it’s about changing lives. Things like this make us forget about our troubles and problems. I hope this inspires the younger generation to say, OMs is not just a home of rugby, it’s a home away from home where we can try by all means to make you a better man and to give you a better life.

“That is our major goal. That expression and experience is shown in the park where we get points because that is the heart with foundation and with a history of where we are coming from,” said Madida.

Saturday’s victory was their second over the Warriors in three outings this season. They won the first game 16-12 before going on to suffer their only defeat of the season in the reverse fixture, losing 22-15 prior to the final win. — @brandon_malvin