Offside: Keeping score
An unorthodox rugby match in Schaarbeek made headlines for unusual reasons last week
Nice try
But, like so many things, it turned out not to be quite so simple.
The referee called in sick. Zinnik, the visiting team, assumed the match was off. Kituro, by contrast, went out and found a substitute ref. At kick-off, an hour behind schedule, most of the Zinnik team, including the manager, were still at home. The substitute ref, nevertheless, declared the fixture in order and started the match.
The result was, as you might imagine, a bloodbath. Kituro scored time after time, to the accompaniment of loud booing from the crowd. The few Zinnik players on hand chose to remain on the pitch rather than forfeit the match, which, according to expert opinion at the BBC, would have earned them no points at all instead of one for being the losing side.
The amazing thing is that Zinnik managed to score even those three points, thanks to a drop goal, which, in the circumstances, has to be regarded as a titanic achievement.
The team now plan, understandably, to appeal the result to the Belgian Rugby Union. You can see a short video of the game on YouTube.
There is a happy ending to the story: Zinnik now occupy third place in the league table, one point ahead of Kituro.
Photo courtesy Sportkipik.be
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