Pirin beat Shumen 31 to 21 in the Bulgarian First Rugby League on Saturday, a result that surprised plenty of people who had the visitors winning. The hosts sat sixth in the table with two games under their belt, while Shumen were eighth after three matches. Pirin took all three points, and the visitors left with nothing more than a draw record.
There is history between them, and by then the visitors had only managed two draws from three games. To be fair, they had taken a point from Lokomotiv Gorna away earlier in the season, but they were not finding a way to win. Pirin, meanwhile, had one win and one draw and were building something solid at home.
And here's the thing about the scoreline — 31 to 21 is not a runaway, but it is enough. Shumen had drawn with Spartak Varna 30 to 30 in their last outing, so they knew how to compete, just not how to finish. Pirin's defence kept its side in it for long stretches, and when the visitors pushed, the hosts held firm.
We had given the prediction a Shumen victory at 62 per cent confidence, but the match went the other way. What broke it was Pirin's recent form — they had beaten Dobrudzha 35 to 24 and Osam Lovech 34 to 29 in March, showing they could score freely. Against Shumen, who had lost to Lokomotiv Gorna 21 to 27 in May, Pirin found their rhythm and pressed high up the pitch.
The result moves Pirin further clear in the middle of the table, while Shumen remain bottom-half without a win. Two points now separate the hosts from fourth place, and the visitors are still searching for that first victory of the season. It was not a spectacle, but it was a proper rugby match, and Pirin deserved the three points.
