It’s scrum down as Kenya Sevens kick off Olympics campaign against Great Britain

Richard de Carpentier (C) of England is tackled by three players from Kenya during their rugby match of the Dubai leg of IRB's Sevens World Series on December 4, 2015. AFP PHOTO / MARWAN NAAMANI

“We hope at the end of six games, we will be going home with a gold medal.”

That is the message from the rugby Sevens coach Benjamin Ayimba as Kenya begin the battle for glory with a match against Great Britain today.

Ayimba said it would be tough to emerge top at the end of the competition, but was also quick to point out that it would be tough for all the 12 teams. So Kenyans should expect their team to do well.

The opening two matches will be tough for Kenya and if they win both, then they have a high chance of going all the way to the gold medal match.

Great Britain, which will be calling on players from Scotland, Wales and England, all of who are regular campaigners in the International Rugby Board (IRB) circuit, will provide the first test for Kenya at 12pm (6pm Kenyan time).

After the opener against the British, Kenya will face another tough encounter against New Zealand at 5:30pm (11:30pm Kenyan time) before wrapping up their Pool C matches against another tricky side, Japan.

The Kenyans will, however, be encouraged by the fact they have beaten all the teams in the IRB circuit before, and the Olympic Games will be no different.

Ayimba will also be calling on a very experienced crop of players led by captain Andrew Amonde, who says the biggest challenge for them in their pursuit for glory will be themselves.

“If we turn up and play our game then it does not matter how strong Britain, New Zealand or Japan are as we know we can beat everyone like we have done in the circuit,” Amonde said after yesterday’s training session.

Apart from Amonde, leading try scorer Collins Injera will also be the main man for Kenya and his pace will come in handy, especially in the opening two matches, which will be key in determining if Kenya will progress to the quarters or not.

The return of Nondies fly-half Biko Adema, who missed most of the IRB legs, will also be a welcome boost to the team and will provide experience in kicking even though youngster Samuel Oliech has been doing well in his absence.

Dennis Ombachi, who landed Kenya in the Olympics with a last-minute try against Zimbabwe will also provide his useful experience and physique together with Willy Ambaka, who has been the mainstay in the IRB circuit.

Oliech said all they were thinking about was winning gold and he believes they can be top of the world once again like they did in the Singapore leg of the IRB series.

“We have trained well and are ready for the opening match. The training we had at Nandi Bears before coming to the games was also very good and we are ready to make Kenya proud,” he said.