South Raiders confirm presence in Mosi Sevens
By Sports Reporter
TOP South African provincial Rugby team, Raiders have become the latest team to confirm participation in the 2005 Mosi Sevens international tournament billed for the Lusaka Rugby Club (LRC) on July 2 and 3.
National Sevens team coach Musa Zimba said in Lusaka yesterday the Gauteng province outfit makes the number of teams that have confirmed participation in the two-day event to seven with the others being Mphumalanga, Western Province, South African Airways and Blue Bulls all from South Africa and Zimbabwe A and B.
Zimba said the organising committee might have to change the number of participating teams in this year’s event from the initial target of 16 to 12 to allow more foreign teams (eight) than the local teams (four).
He said Zambia would now only enter four teams, Zambia A, Zambia B, Copperbelt Select and a Midlands select side to give the visiting teams better competition.
“We have decided to do this to avoid our local sides going down by big margins like 106-0 at the hands of the foreign clubs,” Zimba said.
He said committee might have to rescind its decision and allow 16 teams to take part in the rugby tournament should it receive more confirmations before the date of the event.
Zimba said he would announce the provisional teams for both the Zambia A and B tomorrow and the team would enter camp on Sunday.
He revealed that South African-based Owen Busange had been co-opted on the Zambian technical bench with a view of moulding him into a Sevens coach for the future.
And Mosi sevens media liaison officer Davey Sakala said in a statement that the Mosi sevens technical committee comprising Kelvin Haule, Wasp Mhango and Christopher Kaniki would use the Heroes Sevens, held last Saturday and the Rhino Sevens to be held this weekend, to select four top teams from the two tournaments and two “wild card” teams.
Sakala said since the event was invitational, participating teams would be free to invite players from anywhere to play for them in the tournament.
He said all the participating teams were being expected in Lusaka by July 1.
