The Punter
7 September 2008
Nairobi — The national men's rugby coach Michael Otieno and his captain Innocent Simiyu are encouraged by the progress made by the women's team.
They took time off to give tips to the women's seven-a-side team which is training for the Africa Zone of the 2009 Rugby World Cup Sevens tournament to be held in the United Arab Emirates. Said Otieno: "There is a lot of potential and talent in the team which only needs a good structure to ease to the next level."
The coach, a former Kenya full-back and kicker noted the players needed innovation and variety in their game.
"They should run into space so often and work on their passes," he advised. But, Otieno added the women's team needed to work as a unit.
Simiyu agreed. "They have very strong runners who are able to take initiative. What they need are a few technical aspects, work on their hands and this would increase their chances of winning the tournament in Uganda. They can win," he suggested.
Saturday's session was watched by Richard Omwela, the Kenya Rugby Football Union chairman and Gordon Anampiu, one of the KRFU Board of Directors.
One of the top referees Godwin Karuga has been helping out with the new Experimental Law Variations which have been in use since September 1.
Coach Sammy Kemmey, a former Kenya scrum-half is satisfied with the progress after including the men's national seven-a-side coach Benjamin Ayimba, Felix Otieno - his assistant - and two players - Simiyu and Humphrey Kayange.
He has tried out several combinations and believes Kenya has a chance of clinching one of the two slots in Kampala on September 20 and 21.
The bulk of the provisional team has been named from the 15's side which beat Uganda 15-13 in the second leg of Elgon Cup match in Nairobi.
Already, nine countries - Kenya, Uganda, Burundi, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Rwanda, Morocco, Tunisia and South Africa.
The travelling players will be named on September 17 after trials at the RFUEA ground.
The men's team for the Africa Zone qualifiers on October 31 and November 1 in Tunis, Tunisia begin preparations next month.
Three teams will qualify from Tunis for the 2009 Rugby World Cup Sevens to be hosted in the United Arab Emirates in Dubai.
Up to 15 teams are expected in Tunisia. Some of them are Kenya, Uganda, Morocco, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Senegal, Madagascar, Tunisia. Cote d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Nigeria, Botswana and Swaziland.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 The Nation. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
