The Kenya sevens side to the Hong Kong and Tokyo legs of the HSBC circuit was named earlier today at the RFUEA grounds.
The team that leaves on Monday sees the return of influential captain Andrew Amonde and features one debut in Kenya Harlequins half back Max Theuri. The rest of the squad is as was in the Vegas and Wellington.
The squad once again does not feature the normal half backs we are used to, Max the only one poised for that role and even he, is a natural back row. Head coach Paul Treu however noted that Theuri will get little playing time as he is still in his development.That then will mean that vice captain Collins Injera will probably continue as sweeper.
The return of captain Amonde will go a long way in settling the forwards. Horace Otieno, Patrice Agunda and Dan Sikuta fill the other slots in this department. Biko Adema will most likely get the nod at Fly half with Ayodi and Billy on the outside. Agevi, Ombachi and Theuri off the bench.
During the ceremony, Paul Treru also mentioned that they were hoping for continuity with this squad hence the minor changes. During the last two legs, the side had the second best scoring rate and defence, which can be attributed to the day 2 performances.
The head coach also noted that the side has had very little luck with the draw as we usually face the top sides very early on. He went on to mention that it was not going to get easier and the side must work hard to make their own luck in the draws.
This is a very good side and with more training time under their belts, the performances should improve in these two legs. The side is pooled alongside Argentina, South Africa and hosts Japan. They kick off against South Africa then play Argentina, again in this one we need a big start.
Though looking at these fixtures we can afford a slip up in the first one and still sneak into the quarter finals. That however should be a worse case scenario with the side set to go for the jugular from game one.
The squad in full : Horace Otieno, Oscar Ouma, Patrice Agunda, Daniel Sikuta, Dennis Ombachi, Billy Odhiambo, Biko Adema, Andrew Amonde, Maxwell Theuri, Michael Agevi, Collins Injera, Oscar Ayodi.
KWISHA….Nimeruka Nje
