Kenya Shujaa showcased their dominance in the pool matches at the London Sevens in Twickenham, England, defeating Canada 24-19 and Tonga 38-26 on Saturday.
Their impressive performance puts them on the brink of securing a spot in the World Rugby Sevens Series 2024 Play-off final, with one crucial match remaining against Uruguay on Sunday.
Led by the outstanding Kevin Wekesa, who scored a hat-trick of tries in both matches, Coach Damian McGrath’s team has secured a guaranteed top-two finish in their group.
In their opening match against Canada, Shujaa displayed resilience by coming from behind to take a significant step towards the play-off final. Wekesa’s hat trick and a try from Edmund Anya propelled Kenya to victory, overcoming an early 5-0 deficit from an Alex Russell try.
Despite Canada briefly regaining the lead, Wekesa’s heroics, supported by the precise kicking of Anthony Omondi, ensured a halftime advantage of 14-12 for Kenya.
The second half saw back-and-forth action, with Wekesa once again making a significant impact by equalizing the score at 19-19 before Anya sealed the victory with a try just seconds before the final whistle.
Kenya’s previous encounters with Canada at the London Sevens have been notable, with a comprehensive 38-12 win in 2013 and a 17-17 draw the following year, both during the group phase. While Kenya secured a 12-7 victory over Canada in the Bowl quarter-finals of the 2009 London Sevens, they suffered a 33-7 loss to them last weekend in the group stage of the Toulouse Sevens.
With these victories, Kenya currently leads their pool, followed by Uruguay, who defeated Tonga 15-12 thanks to a last-minute try from Baltazar Amaya.
In their match against Tonga, Shujaa’s power and skill prevailed, resulting in tries from Wekesa (three), Brian Tanga, captain Nelson Oyoo, and Anya. Successful conversions by Omondi and Daniel Taabu further solidified Kenya’s dominance, bringing them closer to the Play-off final.
Kenya and Uruguay will face off in their final Pool play-off match on Sunday at 2:19 pm. The top two teams from this four-nation competition will then compete in a winner-takes-all play-off at 6:56 pm on Sunday, determining the twelfth and final team for the revamped men’s 2024 World Rugby Sevens Series.
