Kenya’s national women’s rugby sevens team, the Lionesses, kicked off their Challenger Series campaign in Cape Town with a dominant 20-5 victory over Samoa on Saturday afternoon.
Team captain Grace Adhiambo led from the front, scoring a sensational hattrick to inspire her side to an impressive win.
Adhiambo opened the scoring in the third minute, capitalizing on a numerical advantage after Samoa’s Drenna Falaniko was sent to the sin bin. Despite sustained pressure, the Lionesses went into halftime with a narrow 5-0 lead, as Samoa suffered another setback with Fogamanono Tusiga receiving a yellow card in the sixth minute.
The second half saw Adhiambo extend Kenya’s lead with her second try in the eighth minute, though her conversion attempt was unsuccessful. Samoa responded with a try of their own through Maria Nikolao, cutting the deficit to 10-5.
Kenya quickly regained control, with Naomi Amuguni crossing the whitewash in the 11th minute to stretch the Lionesses’ lead. Adhiambo, despite her struggles with conversions, sealed the victory in style with a brilliant solo run down the left flank, securing her hattrick in the final minute.
