Rugby: Ofafa Jericho show off depth to lift Floodies crown

By BS MULAVI

Ofafa Jericho

Ofafa Jericho (pictured) has defied all odds to be crowned the Impala Floodlit champions for the schools category of the tournament.

In a solid performance at the Impala grounds on Saturday afternoon, Ofafa confidently and convincingly beat Alliance High to lift the coveted trophy and make a strong statement in rugby.

Speaking to FeverPitch after the match, Ofafa Captain Kennedy Njane claimed that the victory proved rugby can also be played in Eastlands.

In previous years the Impala Floodlit tournament has been a preserve of schools like Nairobi School, Lenana and Mangu, but this time round Ofafa has turned tides and proved all their critics wrong.

“We wanted to win this wholeheartedly thus it was our determination that got us through the match against Alliance,” he said.

“Credit to Alliance for a spirited fight, they gave us a tough game and showed great maturity in their play but it was the team that wanted it the most that won,” he added. According to Njane it was the determination of the team and their ability to keep their eyes on the goal that enabled them to win the overall trophy.

 Ofafa Jericho were the underdogs going into the match and they felt that they had a point to prove against all the critics who assumed that the match would go one way, given that Alliance were more experienced in the tournament and had better scores on their qualification rounds to the final.

The win for Ofafa Jericho is reflective of the number of changes that have been happening in rugby in recent years. At club level, the Ngong road sides are no longer the kings of rugby, with team like Nakuru RFC and KCB taking the glory, same way as the shift of glory from Nairobi School and Lenana to schools like Ofafa Jericho which is giving opportunities to a new crop of players that might be soon knocking on the door of national junior team selection.