When head coach Paul Treu named the Kenya sevens squad to the Glasgow and London legs, last week, a few things stood out.
Apart from the absence of captain Andrew Amonde, Oscar Ouma and Dan Sikuta, the inclusion of two sweepers in Felix Ayange and Michael Wanjala stood out for me. In the last four legs the technical bench placed their faith in Collins Injera in that role, though exciting at the start, you could see as the legs wore on that it wasn’t quite working.
In Felix Ayange and Michael Wanjala we will have a more natural set of sweepers who will add an extra dimension in our play, especially going forward. Ayange returns for the first time since South Africa with Wanjala making his first appearance this season.
Besides the two, there are also returns for Philip Wamae and Tony Owuor in the forwards for captain Amonde who is out injured and Ouma who has family commitments. Wamae last featured in the team during the Dubai leg, with Owuor’s last showing coming in Wellington.
The presence of two sweepers in the 12 will most likely mean that we will see the captain to the two legs, Collo, move to centre or wing where he is most devastating. The thought of him playing alongside Billy, Ayodi or Ombachi makes it pretty exciting.
In the forwards, Horace Otieno and Patrice Agunda will probably start alongside either Owuor or Wamae. We’ll probably be lighter in this department but what we lose in weight we make up for in mobility, so expect quicker break downs.
The rest of the squad remains as was in Japan with Biko, Billy, Ombachi, Patrice, Agevi and Oscar Ayodi retaining their places in the side.
Last season, Glasgow was our worst outing, we failed to win on day one, going on to lose in the Bowl final, 12-5 to Australia. This time, we go into the tournament placed ninth on the overall log with 60 points after seven legs.
The team will be looking to make a strong finish to what has been a tough season, that will however not be an easy task. We face Wales, Fiji and Argentina respectively in Pool C, they rarely come much tougher than this.
It will be the fourth meeting against Wales, having won two and lost two, the last loss a painful 10-7 in Hong Kong. You feel that the side, especially Injera, will have some unfinished business this one.
We have met Fiji four times this season, losing on each occasion, the last a 43-19 loss in Japan. We have struggled against the islanders this season, a strong showing over the 14 minutes will be welcome here.
The last encounter in Pool C will be against Argentina, this will be our second meeting this season having beaten them 24-7 in Japan. This will be our easier fixture on paper, but the Argentines will be no push over on the green.
A spot in the cup quarter final in the last two legs will be a welcome return as we look to next season.
The squad in full : Collins Injera, Horace Otieno, Patrice Agunda, Felix Ayange, Billy Odhiambo, Dennis Ombachi, Biko Adema, Philip Wamae, Michael Wanjala, Oscar Ayodi, Tony Owuor, Michael Agevi.
The fixtures, games to be played on 3rd May, Kenya time :
vs Wales – 12:52 pm
vs Fiji – 15:36 pm
vs Argentina – 19:09 pm
KWISHA…Nimeruka Nje!!!
