Kenya bag shield

By BS MULAVI

Kenya's woes in the opening leg of the International Rugby Board (IRB) Sevens Circuit in Dubai continued in the second day, with the national team suffering one of their most humiliating defeats in recent times by going down 43-0 to Argentina.

Kenya, who went on to win the Shield Trophy, which carries little weight, succumbed to an embarrassing ‘cricket-score’ loss to Argentina, who were eager to make up for a poor first day on their part.

Even though both teams wanted to atone for their poor performance on Friday, it was Argentina who seemed to have their act together, catching Kenya off guard in both their offensive and defensive play.

Kenya hardly had a feel of the ball and the Pumas made good of the possession to inflict damage that will haunt Ayimba and his side for days to come.

The Pumas managed to run in seven unanswered tries that marched them through to the Bowl semis and condemned Kenya to the Shield semi-finals, where they met Portugal.

Kayange’s resilience

Had it not been for the resilience of captain Humphrey Kayange who seemed the only player who could get over the advantage line, Kenya would have again easily lost to Portugal, who fought hard but were unfortunate to lose 19-12.

KCB forward Andrew Amonde brought his career tally to three tries in the IRB Circuit, with a quick brace against Portugal and Kayange sealed off the score with a try of his own. The Mwamba back could have also got a brace, but a knock-on in the dying minutes of the game denied him a try at the corner flag.

The hard-fought victory over Portugal helped Kenya progress to the Shield final, where they met familiar rivals France, who have also been having a torrid time in the circuit in previous years but are struggling to get back on the boat.

Kenya beat france

It is in the finals that Kenya drowned their sorrows, with a 26-0 thumping of the European side in what was a one-sided match that showed the potential the team is sitting on.

Patrice Agunda, Andrew Amonde, Humphrey Kayange and Gibson Weru all got their names on the score board to seal the scores and claim the Shield trophy.

Kenya looked comfortable, running round France, and getting their passes together but it would count for nothing as it was too late to bring their A- game on to the table.

Despite winning the shield trophy, Kenya gets no points for their endeavours and now focus turns to the George-leg in South Africa, which kicks off next weekend.

Coach Ayimba has had a look of his team in action and will have to come up with a trick or two if they are to seriously contend for points in the second-leg of the IRB Circuit.

Captain Humphrey Kayange has cut a forlorn figure, fighting for the team and this might force Ayimba to call for more experienced players,with Innocent Simiyu having declared he might be available for the next leg.

Meanwhile, Britain’s Warrington Wolves have signed former Australia international three-quarter Joel Monaghan on a one-year contract.

The 28-year-old resigned from Canberra Raiders after he was photographed in a compromising position with a dog at their end-of-season party.

"We are delighted to be signing Joel as players of his calibre do not become available too often," said Warrington Wolves head coach Tony Smith.

Monaghan, who will play alongside his older brother Michael at the Halliwell Jones, had been in demand following his decision to spend 2011 away from Australia.