Morocco began their defence of the Tri-Nations Maghreb tournament on Sunday with a tense 17-16 victory against Tunisia at the Oujda Municipal Stadium.

Morocco haven’t lost at home to Tunisia in over a quarter of a century, but they were pushed all the way by their Rugby Africa Gold Cup rivals in what could be a title-defining encounter.

The victory followed their 14-12 win over Tunisia at the first edition of this competition 12 months ago and was worth a fraction under three-quarters of a rating point. With an improved overall rating of 48.97 points, they move up five places to 38th and climb above Tunisia in the process. Tunisia drop four to 44th.

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The second match of the North African Tri-Nations takes place on Wednesday when Algeria, newly promoted to Rugby Africa’s Silver Cup competition, entertain Tunisia. Morocco play Algeria in the concluding game on Saturday.