Morocco’s Atlas Lions booked their spot in the 5th Place Final of the Rugby Africa Cup after defeating hosts Uganda 24-12 in a hard-fought placement semifinal at Namboole Stadium.
The North Africans will now face Senegal, who earlier outclassed Ivory Coast 28-3, while Uganda drops to the 7th Place Final against Ivory Coast.
Morocco came into the game aiming to bounce back from a heavy 43-8 quarterfinal defeat to Zimbabwe, while Uganda were out for a win after they fell narrowly to Kenya Simbas in a tense 31-24 contest.
Morocco wasted no time asserting themselves, striking early in the 2nd minute through Adil Achahbar after a quick tap-and-go. El Kadri Naoufal added the conversion for a 7-0 lead.
They doubled their advantage in the 13th minute when Maamry Yassine cut through Uganda’s defense to touch down. Naoufal again converted to stretch the lead to 14-0. Uganda fought to respond but struggled to break through Morocco’s disciplined defense, trailing by the same margin at halftime.
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The second half saw Morocco extend their dominance in the 54th minute through Karim Qadiri, who powered through Uganda’s defenders for their third try. Naoufal missed the extras, leaving the score at 19-0.
Uganda finally found a breakthrough when Philip Wokorach scored in the 63rd minute, though his conversion went wide, cutting the deficit to 19-5. Morocco quickly replied with a fourth try from Bilal Fadli after a well-worked lineout, although the conversion attempt missed again, making it 24-5.
Wokorach struck again for Uganda in the 76th minute, this time adding the conversion himself for a 24-12 scoreline, but the hosts ran out of time as Morocco comfortably closed out the win.
Morocco will now meet Senegal in the 5th Place Final, while Uganda will face Ivory Coast in the battle for 7th place.
