Earliest encounters

Kenya and Uganda have a long history of rugby matches going back even before the first official match in 1958. Prior to the formation of the Rugby Football Union of Kenya (RFUK)^[a] in 1921 and the Uganda Rugby Football Union (URFU) in 1955, these two territories put out representative sides though, without a governing union, they could not award caps. Games were frequently played in the early days by representative sides from Kenya and Uganda (and also Tanganyika) against each other and against touring sides most notably from Royal Naval vessels and British and South African Universities (the University of Stellenbosch, University of Cape Town, Rhodes University and the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge).

The very first match between Kenya and Uganda involved an incident that may well be unique in international rugby history. In the early 1930s there was only one rugby club in Uganda (the Uganda RFC, later to become "Uganda Kobs RFC" and then "Kampala Kobs RFC") and a number of Ugandan players (including Percy Minns) persuaded the Kenya clubs to send a Kenya XV to play against them in Entebbe. Unfortunately, both teams arrived with a set of white jerseys. According to long established tradition in rugby, it is the duty of the home side to change shirts in the event of a clash; about 10 miles from the clubhouse in Kampala, Uganda resorted to dying their shirts in the water-bucket on the sideline using the iodine from the medical kit. The shirts were worn wet and, according to contemporary reports, the spectators and referee had greater and greater difficulty telling the sides apart as the game progressed. Rugby is a game rooted deeply in tradition and, as a result of this incident, Ugandan representative sides wore black shirts for almost 100 years in memory of this incident. It is only recently that they have started wearing shirts that include red and orange, the other two colours present in the Ugandan flag, though the predominant colour still tends to be black.

The first official matches

The three African Great Lakes countries of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda have a long shared history of rugby. For much of their history, they have relied on each other for club, inter-district, inter-territorial and international matches, as well as combining their resources to create a regional squad. This has all been aided by their membership in the Rugby Football Union of East Africa (RFUEA), an umbrella union for the three nations both before and after they each achieved independence in the early 1960s. Until independence, each was regarded as a colonial possession of the British Empire rather than an independent nation.

The first interterritorial match for Kenya took place in 1954 at Arusha against Tanganyika (as Tanzania was known at the time). It was held shortly before the First Tuskers Copperbelt tour later that year and served as a selection trial for the tour. This match was won by Kenya though the exact score is not known. This fixture was repeated in 1955 and 1956. With the URFU having recently been formed, it was decided to attempt a three-way competition in 1957; Uganda were to travel play Tanganyika in Arusha and Kenya were to visit Uganda in Kampala. Uganda, who were chiefly responsible for the initiative, fulfilled their commitment though the score or winner is not known. Kenya were unable to travel to play Uganda as organised due to commitments raised by the Combined Oxford and Cambridge Universities tour that year.

The first official match between Uganda and Kenya took place in 1958, when Kenya (then Kenya Colony) travelled to play Uganda (then Uganda Protectorate) in Kampala. Kenya beat Uganda by three goals and two tries to one goal, one penalty goal and one try. In 1958, a try was worth three points, so the final score was 11 – 21.

1958

Uganda	11 – 21	Kenya
Try: (2) Con: (1) Pen: (1) Drop: None		Try: (5) Con: (3) Pen: None Drop: None

Kampala, Uganda

Team Lists

UGANDA Player Club FB 15 P.F.H. Williams Kampala RFC RW 14 N.B. Hooper Kampala RFC OC 13 M. Forster Kampala RFC IC 12 E.R. McKay Nile RFC LW 11 J. Henderson Nile RFC FH 10 J. O'Neill Kampala RFC SH 9 A. Knott Kampala RFC LP 1 A.P. Constable Uganda Police RFC HK 2 R. Yeates Uganda Police RFC TP 3 B.S. Bennie Kampala RFC LL 4 C.A.G. Hogg Uganda Police RFC RL 5 G. Williams Kampala RFC BF 6 H. Klynsmith Kampala RFC OF 7 I.J. Pook Elgon RFC N8 8 S. Golledge Nile RFC

KENYA Player Club FB 15 G.D. Brown Impala RFC RW 14 B. Granville-Ross Nondescripts RFC OC 13 D.F. Rees Kenya Harlequins IC 12 G.P. Meintjes Eldoret RFC LW 11 W.R. Millar Nakuru RFC FH 10 D. Opie Nakuru RFC SH 9 W. Law Nakuru RFC LP 1 L. Tucker Nakuru RFC HK 2 R. Pollastri Nakuru RFC TP 3 B. Hatfield Kitale RFC LL 4 K.V. Oulton Nakuru RFC RL 5 D.S. Reynolds Nakuru RFC BF 6 D. Kennedy Nakuru RFC OF 7 E. Evans Kericho RFC N8 8 S. Luow Impala RFC

Post Colonial Rugby

Photo of Kenya players holding the Elgon Cup

Kenya's relatively smooth transition to independence and trouble free ensuing years under President Jomo Kenyatta saw rugby continue to thrive in this country. Despite the fact that Idi Amin was a keen rugby player himself, the expulsion of expatriates from - and the general political instability in - Uganda under his reign disrupted the playing of domestic and international fixtures in Uganda. As a result, Kenya have generally had the upper-hand in this East African derby. However, in recent years the success of the Kenya 7's team has had a negative effect on the 15-a-side game as resources and focus has shifted toward the shortened version of the game. This and the recent resurgence in the Ugandan rugby club scene has seen the balance of power shift westwards.

Victoria Cup

The most recent innovation has been the Victoria Cup. This is slated to be an annual three-way competition between Kenya, Uganda and Zimbabwe played on a home-and-away basis. Rather than duplicate the fixture it has been decided that the pre-existing Elgon Cup games between Kenya and Uganda will take place within this new tournament. The Victoria Cup was first played in June and July 2010.