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Shujaa will take on Uruguay and Tonga in the final Pool games.
The national men’s rugby sevens side, Shujaa were off to a dream start in the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series Promotion/Relegation Playoff with Kevin Wekesa’s brilliance sealing a 24-29 win over Canada.
Kenya 7s were placed in Pool D alongside Uruguay, Canada, and Challenger Series champions Tonga with the four teams fighting for the final 12th slot of the 2023-2024 season which will adopt a new format.
Shujaa found themselves in the Promotion/Relegation Playoff after finishing 13th in the regular season with the 15th-ranked team (Japan) automatically relegated to the 2024 Challenger Series.
The 12th to 14th-ranked teams are facing off against the Challenger Series 2023 winner (Tonga) for the final position in the 2024 World Series.
Canada had a brilliant start to the game as they capitalized on a knock from Alvin Otieno which saw Thomas Isherwood offload the ball to Alex Russell who strolled to make the opening try that Isherwood converted.
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17:26 - 16.05.2023
RUGBY Details of Kenya 7s path in the World Series promotion/relegation play off
Shujaa are on the brink of relegation and need improved performances to preserve their core status.
Kabras Sugar ace Kevin Wekesa drew Kenya level with a lung-bursting run from inside his own half with Anthony Omondi adding the extras.
That lethal combination of Russell and Isherwood returned to torment Shujaa once again as the latter offloaded to the former who touched down his second try of the game but the conversion was missed.
Wekesa again showed a clean pair of heels as he received a well-weighted switch pass from Herman Humwa to bag his first-half brace that saw Kenya head into the break with a slender 14-12 lead.
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09:22 - 17.05.2023
RUGBY Abukuse optimistic Shujaa can avoid relegation from World Series
The Menengai Oilers player has had a good individual debut season, scoring 10 tries and amassing 60 points.
Canada however had a mirror start to the second half as a pick-and-go on the blind side from Max Stewart saw the see-saw game have a new leader with Canada ahead 19-14 after Ishwewood’s conversion.
Shujaa had to rely on the brilliance of Wekesa who bulldozed his way to the try box to seal his hat-trick and leave the game balancing on a knife edge after Omondi missed the conversion to leave the scores tied at 19-19.
Kenya however still had something left in the tank as Edmond Anya put the game beyond Canada with a last-gasp try but there was still time for the restart but Shujaa held on for the vital win.
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