Rugby: Kenya Simbas to play in Currie Cup

Kenya Simbas players celebrate their victory against Zambia during their Rugby Africa Cup match at the Nyayo national stadium in Nairobi on July 11, 2021.

The Kenya national 15s rugby men’s team will play in the second tier of the 2022 South African Currie Cup, South Africa Rugby has confirmed.

In the Carling Currie Cup First Division, seven local provincial teams will be joined by Georgia, Kenya and Zimbabwe in a brand-new competition, earmarked to get underway on the first weekend of April.

The trio of international participants will join the defending champions, the Leopards, Griffons, South Western Districts, Boland, Eastern Province, Border and the Valke over a single round of action.

They will join seven local teams in a single-round competition, which kicks off on April 1 with the final scheduled for June 24 or 25.

The three national teams hope playing at least nine matches in South Africa can boost their chances of qualifying for the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.

Kenya and Zimbabwe will field full-strength teams in the Currie Cup.

Kenya and Zimbabwe are among eight countries playing in the 2022 Africa Cup in France from July 1 with the winners qualifying for the World Cup and the runners-up entering an inter-continent Repechage tournament.