Outback Barbarians break Hogs' power

Calistus Kolantsho | Tuesday March 18, 2025 10:02

Outback Barbarians coach, Mike Bishop, told SportMonitor that they were in Gaborone as part of the six games tour of Southern Africa, which will see them playing six matches in South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia. “We have played two games in Cape Town, we also played one game in Kimberley and today we have just played against Hogs. We will then play Zimbabwe Under-20s followed by another match against Livingstone rugby club. We always plan to go on a tour every two years but our plan was affected by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, but we are now back on track. Outback Barbarians is an invitational team, the players we have are recommended to us. We all met two weeks ago, it takes time for them to bond but we have good players,” he said.

Bishop also said they always pick good rugby players, and when they step into the field, they are respectful to the opposition and the referees. Regarding playing against Hogs, Bishop gave credit to the players saying they are tough and probably Barbarians were a bit flat. “We had to pick scrams in order to get on top of Hogs, defense was good, and attack was good. Moving forward, they should tidy the rug a little bit and they should open their eyes when coming to the rug. Apart from that, the backline was good,” he said.



Asked whether there was any player that impressed him the most from Hogs, Bishop said the two forwards and two backs did because they were sharp throughout the match. Hogs assistant coach, Vuyo Moyo, said it went according to plan. It was the first game of the season and everything was alright in the first half. He said in the second half, his charges dipped a little and that was when tries came in. “That is something to expect in the first game; we have a lot to work on and will work on it. The opposition came to us after playing four games, they already had their game moves. As for us, we are still sorting out our combinations. With more games played we will get there. The try that we scored in the last minute shows that my players play until the last minute of the game, that is what we expect,” Moyo said.

Meanwhile, Outback Barbarians victory did not come easy as Hogs gave them some hard work to do in the middle of the park. Hogs started off strong with a clean line break to snatch the first try of the match in the 16th minute. The visitors were able to settle the score in the 27th minute to take the match to a break on 5-5 level. Things changed in the second half when Barbarians dominated Hogs taking the lead. The hosts showed no respect for the visitors as they pushed for a try. At one point the Barbarians were forced to put up a defensive shift five metres out from the line, which led to a turnover, the Barbarians cleared their half. Hogs tries were scored by Munashe Kamunda and Roberto Phobe.

Barbarians: 26 Hogs: 12