Nairobi — The national under-20 rugby team have been tipped to shine on home soil when Kenya hosts the World Rugby Under 20 Trophy in Nairobi on July 15-30 at the Nyayo Stadium, Nairobi.

Kenya Rugby Union chair Alexander 'Sasha' Mutai said the global showpiece presents the union with a perfect chance to nurture the juniors even as they seek to revive Kenyan rugby, which has of late fallen back on hard times.

"We want to return Kenyan rugby to winning ways and in this team, we have confidence in the future of the sport. This tournament is only but the beginning...we are ambitious and confident that they will perform well at this competition," Mutai said.

Chipu finished second in last month's Under 20 Barthes Cup after a 28-7 loss to defending champions Zimbabwe in a hotly-contested final at the same stadium.

The lads will be making their third appearance at the competition after hosting it in 2009 as well as competing in 2019 in Brazil.

Mutai added that KRU will be looking to develop a continual pipeline of talent into the Under 20 level by introduction of more rugby initiatives at the schools.

"We intend to spread rugby to primary schools and expose our young talents to international sporting events. This includes re-introducing a 15s-aside schools tournament," he said.

The chair was speaking on Tuesday during the media launch for the World Under 20 Rugby Tournament during which the union provided updates on the preparations for the competition.

KRU vice-chair Moses Ndale said they have worked hand-in-hand with different stakeholders, including the government, to ensure everything is on course for the two-week tournament.

"We thank the government, via the Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs for the support provided to get the preparations right and ensure the tournament is competitive. The preparations have been going on well," Ndale, also the chair of the local organising committee, said.

Kenya is grouped into Group B where they will battle Hong Kong, Spain, China and Samoa.