Sigalagala had to dig deep to retain the Western Region Nationwide title, narrowly beating Kisii RFC 9-8 in a tense encounter at the Sigalagala Grounds.
Kisii started on the front foot, camping in Sigalagala’s half during the early exchanges. Their pressure paid off when their fly-half showed quick thinking, slotting in a drop goal to give the visitors a 3-0 lead.
The drop goal served as a wake-up call for the hosts, who responded by building momentum and came close to scoring a center-post try, only to fumble the ball at the crucial moment.
As the heavens opened and rain poured down, Sigalagala earned a penalty. Benjamin Brill stepped up and slotted it through to level the scores at 3-3.
Both sides continued to press for more points, but a heavy downpour hampered visibility, forcing a temporary halt to the game.
After nearly an hour’s delay, play resumed with a scrum, and Kisii nearly regained the lead but missed a penalty attempt. However, they regrouped and capitalized on an overload after a patient build-up, crossing over for a try. The conversion was missed, but they carried an 8-3 lead into halftime.
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Sigalagala came out determined in the second half and were rewarded when Brill slotted in another penalty to cut the deficit to 8-6.
Brill, however, had a frustrating spell as he slipped during a long-range penalty attempt, miscued a drop goal, and missed another kick from close range. Sigalagala had two more penalty chances, but both failed due to lack of power from the kicker.
A well-placed grubber kick into Kisii’s 22 put the visitors under pressure, leading to a scrum. Sigalagala dominated the territory and earned multiple penalties in the red zone. After several unsuccessful attempts to score from the scrum, they opted to go for points, and Brill once again came through, drilling in the decisive penalty for a 9-8 lead.
Sigalagala held on to the slender lead to be crowned champions once again.
