The performance of Kenya Sevens team in the 2019/2020 World Rugby Sevens Series is both embarrassing and worrying. The team has reached the main Cup quarterfinals just twice this season — in Cape Town Sevens and Hamilton Sevens. Kenya lies 12th with 35 points in the 16-team series.
This is worrying because there are just four out of 10 tournaments left to be played in the current season.
When New Zealander Paul Feney took over as coach last year, there were high hopes that the team would rediscover the form that saw it win the main trophy in 2016 in Singapore Sevens.
Most of the senior players, who had walked away from the team the previous season, returned. Kenya Rugby Union (KRU) improved the welfare of the players, who had stayed away the previous season in protest against reduced salaries and allowances.
Rugby fans were pregnant with hope when Kenya’s second-tier team Morans stunned South Africa 19-14 to win the 2019 Safari Sevens in Nairobi last October. But it has been a case of false hope.
Kenya Sevens players have become perennial losers with stars like Collins Injera, William Ambaka, Oscar Ouma, Billy Odhiambo and Samuel Oliech struggling to find their former self. The players struggle to execute tackles, to defend and to launch attacks, and the team has lost its flair and passion for the game.
Feney has done well to ensure continuity in the team by introducing younger players but he needs to work on team strategy and the players’ mental strength for the team to start winning again.
Unlike in previous seasons, the team prepared well for the current season. But with only four legs remaining this season, and with 2020 Tokyo Olympics in sight, KRU should work with the team’s technical bench to quickly find a solution.
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