Sports Monthly

The resurgence of the 15s

Mwamba RFC utility player Horace Otieno announced his debut in the national 15s team with two tries against Cameroon in Yaounde, which saw Kenya qualify for a historic Africa Cup semi-final. The winning try came with only two minutes left when Otieno powered over the line after combining well with Innocent Simiyu and Mark Mshila. He had opened the scores for Kenya before Paul Oimbo also barged over. Peter Mutai slotted two conversions and added a penalty.

The hard earned 22-19 victory came even as the team complained of mistreatment in the hands of Cameroonians customs officials. According to the team manager Wangila Simiyu, the team was delayed at a police roadblock for more than three and a half hours because they did not have entry visas upon their arrival in Yaounde. The Cameroonian personnel at the roadblock asked for $150 per person.

The team was allowed in only after Simiyu promised to ask for the funds from Nairobi. Kenya got assistance from the Kenya Airways Station Manager – Mr Njuma - in Yaounde who facilitated the issuance of an entry visa at $110 per player. Despite all these problems, the players kept a cool head.

Kenya was also taken to a murram pitch to train on the eve of the match. “We refused and returned to the hotel,” the team manager said. This was the only time that Kenya was given an opportunity to train. Kenya was initially denied a chance to train at the match venue on the eve of the match. “We were only taken there after insisting that it was a requirement but even then, it was too late in the evening,” he said.

As if this was not enough, Kenya Harlequin hooker Vincent Ong’era who was left behind and travelled after the team had left, was put on the next plane back after being denied an entry visa Douala for onward transit to Yaounde. He stayed at the airport for 24 hours before being flown back.

Cameroon Rugby officials did not help resolve the visa hitch. On the match day, Cameroonian rugby officials did not send transport to take the team to the match venue. “We hired seven taxis to ferry the team,” Simiyu lamented. This was almost the same treatment Kenya got in 2001 during the Rugby World Cup qualifiers.

On the pitch, Kenya was trailing by three points with two minutes remaining on the dial. It took the initiative of Innocent Simiyu, Mark Mshila and Horace Otieno to win the game. Simiyu drew four players and passed the ball to Mshila who joined in the attack. He unloaded the ball to Otieno who powered over the line despite being tackled by Cameroon players.

Injury and fatigue is the main worry for coach Michael ‘Tank’ Otieno. Paul Oimbo, Edwin Alubaka, Daniel Kiptoo need time to recover from injuries while Simiyu is fatigued despite playing a very good game. Mutai who worked tirelessly behind the scrum got a standing ovation from the sizeable crowd when he was substituted in the second half with Moses Kola.

The Cote d’Ivoire officials and Togolese match commissioner did not escape the wrath of the Kenyan officials. “I have not seen anything like it,” Simiyu acknowledged. He admitted the match was physical. “ Cameroon relied on brute strength rather than a structured approach.”

Kenya , Uganda, Madagascar and Cote d’Ivoire have qualified for the semis and will bid for the semis. Kenya and Uganda are more centrally situated and have an edge on the other semi-finalists.
Bids from the four semi-finalists shall determine the venue for the championship which has been slated from August 6 to 12.
Paul Sigombe, the Africa Rugby Confederation Director for Development and Competitions hinted that the winning bid should provide value for money. “We need a lot of coverage by the media to take the game to the next level,” he said.

Two North African countries – Tunisia and Morocco – will be missing out for the first time. The resurgence of East African teams is complete after Kenya and Uganda made it to the last four.

South Africa Amateurs failed to clear the hurdle after Central African Republic awarded Madagascar their postponed match. Madagascar was awarded the match on a 21-0 aggregate but needed to beat former World Cup finalists Zimbabwe on July 7 in Harare.

They won 30-29 and squeezed to the semi-final where they face Cote d’Ivoire. Tunisia and Cote d’Ivoire were tied on four points each with one match in hand. With Senegal out of the equation, Cote d’Ivoire narrowly won 16-14 in Abidjan.
Drama marked the second round after Kenya and Uganda pulled out major upsets over Morocco and Namibia to open up the race of the semi-finals. Kenya beat Morocco 23-16 in Nairobi while Uganda stunned Namibia 20-19 in Kampala.