KCB In Sevens Heaven!

KCB RFC claimed their first sevens title at the weekend when they beat Kisumu 15-5 in the first cup quarter final of the Christie sevens. The lions went ahead to pick up the Christie title beating hosts and circuit runner -ups Kenya Harlequins 17-12.

The 2013 Safaricom Sevens Series Champions (Photo - fotogeric)

That win against the Quins saw the bankers pick up their third title this season after successes in Mombasa's Driftwood sevens and Nakuru's Prinsloo. The side capped an impressive run of 21 games unbeaten since they lost in the Cup quarter final in Kabeberi to Impala. That run becomes even more impressive when you realise that the lions have only lost twice in the series, that is two losses in 30 games.

Three cup titles, a third place finish and a Plate title saw the lions pick up 96 points, with second placed Quins on 82. Strathmore who were second coming into the final leg, finished third on 77 points, a point above the Homeboyz. Impala wrap up the top five with 70 points.

DAY 1

Coming into the Christie sevens, KCB were top of the log with 74 points and only needed a Cup semi final to claim their first sevens crown. They went by Day 1 with little trouble, beating Western Bulls 24-5, then following this up with a 36-5 thumping of Mombasa before getting past Nondies 17-5 to top Pool A.

Impala had a tougher time navigating through Pool B, drawing their first match against a stubborn Kisumu 12 all, following this up with a 36-0 win over Eldoret. The gazelles were stretched in their last game against Daystar before edging the students 17-12 to secure first place. Kisumu grabbed second spot to proceed to the cup for the first time ever.

In Pool C, Strathmore and Quins had to be separated by the number of tries they scored after they drew 17 all in the last match in the pool. The Leos had beaten Blak blad 26-5, then put 22 unanswered points past Machine. The hosts on their part beat Machine 36-10, and 31-0 against Blad.

Pool D was as tight as it was expected, with Mwamba edging past Homeboyz 19-17 and Nakuru surprisingly beating Kabras 24-0. Homeboyz then beat Kabras 28-7 with Mwamba falling to Nakuru 12-5 in the second round of games to throw the pool wide open.

Marlon Ondiegi of Mwamba against Homeboyz (Photo - Safaricom)

With three sides on one win each going into the last round it was going to be a battle to the wire. Mwamba beat Kabras 24-5 to inch closer to a Cup spot depending on the last game. Homeboyz then edged past Nakuru 24-7 meaning that the same three sides were on 2 wins each. It came down to points with Homeboyz and Mwamba sailing through in that order.

Quarter Final Pairings

Bowl :

Western Bulls vs Eldoret

Nakuru vs Machine

Blak Blad vs Kabras

Daystar vs Mombasa

Cup :

KCB vs Kisumu

Homeboyz vs Strathmore

Quins vs Mwamba

Impala vs Nondies

The Bulls battled past a resilient Eldoret side to win 24-10 in the first bowl quarter final as Nakuru edged past Machine 17-12. Kabras' woes continued as they fell 14-7 to Blak blad, Daystar rounded up the list of Bowl semi finalists with a 19-12 win over Mombasa.

With the series title at stake, the lions put in three quick tries in the first half to lead 15-0 against Kisumu to make their intentions known. Kisumu played their hearts out in the second but were no match for the series champions in waiting. The Kondele boys got their consolation in the dying minutes to make the final score 15-5.

Andrew Amonde battles against 3 Kisumu players (Photo - Safaricom)

The final whistle signified the end of the race for the series title as the Lions were now on 89 points and were beyond reach of the chasing pack. Celebrations from the side were muted as if to suggest that they were not done yet.

Homeboyz kept their dominance over Strathmore going as the Djs edged out the Leos 31-26 in a match that saw the lead change hands on 4 occasions during the 14 minutes.

The third quarter final saw Quins blank Mwamba 17-0 and await a semi final match against Impala who got past Nondies by the skin of their teeth, 7-5.

Semi Final Pairings

Shield:
Eldoret vs Machine
Kabras vs Mombasa

Bowl:
Western Bulls vs Nakuru
Blak Blad vs Daystar

Plate:
Kisumu vs Strathmore
Mwamba vs Nondies

Cup:
KCB vs Homeboyz
Quins vs Impala

Machine's dismal sevens season came to an end as they fell 7-0 to Eldoret. This game was the perfect summary of Eschuma's season, where they lacked that little edge to close out games despite looking good. The students from Nairobi University finish in 15th, on 10 points, probably their worst finish in history.

Mombasa quickly joined Machine on the side lines, falling to Kabras sugar 29-12 in the second semi final. Mombasa finish the season in 18th spot out of the 19 sides that played in the first division, with three points, from the three legs they have taken part in.

In the Bowl, Western Bulls ended their sevens season with a heart breaking 10-12 loss to Nakuru. The echulusi made a great start in the first two legs where they made it to the cup quarter final, but faded away in the last three where they played in the bowl. The Bulls finish in 8th spot on 43 points and will be taking part in the Clubs category of the Safaricom sevens.

Daystar saw their impressive sevens season grind to a bitter halt as they fell 5-0 to Blak Blad in the second semi final. Daystar finish in 10th on 35 points, after making it to two Cup quarter finals, this by a good mile, the best finish by the Falcons.

With the title already gone and second place also out of reach, Strathmore only had their pride and a spot in the top 3 to salvage. This they did by seeing off a spirited Kisumu side 17-7. Kisumu finish in 9th spot on 37 points. The lake side boys had a strong finish to the season, finally breaking into the cup after having been the bowl specialist.

Mwamba beat Nondies 26-5 in the second semi final but were later disqualified for inexplicably fielding an ineligible player. The player in question, veteran, Richard 'Quicks' Nyakwaka. Though many understood that the black shirts were hit heavily by injuries especially in this tournament, the decision to field Quicks still does not make sense.

Teddy Salano in action against Mwamba (Photo - Michezo Afrika)

That disqualification brought an end to what had looked like a promising season for the one time sevens kings, but ended in a barren run. They finish a distant 6th on 70 points.

With the series title already in the bag, many expected KCB to ease off and probably settle for the Semi final spot. This lions side however had other ideas and were going for the double on the day, when they took the pitch against the Homeboyz they looked even hungrier than they were against Kisumu.

A brace by Ian Indimuli and a Fabian Olando conversion saw the green shirts march into the final with a 12-0 scoreline.

The second semi final was a match that had become a norm through out the season, Quins taking on Impala. The two sides had met 4 times before this, Quins winning 3 of those. The hosts made it 4 in 5 as a Felix Ayange hat trick led the quartered shirts to a 24-14 win over their rivals who scored through Sam Onsomu. This set up a repeat of the cup final in Mombasa, KCB taking on Quins.

FINALS

Shield :

Eldoret vs Kabras

Bowl :

Nakuru vs Blak Blad

Plate :

Strathmore vs Nondies

Bronze :

Homeboyz vs Impala

Cup :

KCB vs Quins

Eldoret RFC upset Kabras 21-19 to lift the Shield title, the pacey Eldoret side edging the mercenaries due to their higher fitness levels. Man city finish the season in 13th on 20 points from the three legs they played in. A dream fourth place finish was quickly followed by two runs in the Shield to bring the sugar boys back to earth. They however can be proud of themselves, for a team that has never trained together they finished above the likes of Machine who have played in all the legs. 

Ken Isindu of Kabras against Eldoret (fotogeric)

Eldoret finish in 14th on 13 points from four legs, their best finish being a loss in the Bowl final.

The Bowl saw Nakuru beat Blak Blad 26-5 to finish in 7th spot on 44 points. The Wanyore had an under par season, mainly featuring in the Bowl, with two appearances in the Plate category. The rift valley side found the going tough in the shorter version and will be looking forward to the start of the fifteens season.

Blad also had a disappointing season, where they failed to replicate the form they showed in the last. The Kenyatta University students finish in 12th spot on 24 points, in a season that they have failed to get past the Bowl semi final stage.

The Plate final had some funny moments before kick off as Mwamba marched onto the pitch to join Nondies and Strathmore. Kulabu had already been disqualified and were just out for some fun, after 'kicking off' the black shirts jogged of the pitch and did their lap of honour.

Nondies and Mwamba hurdle before the Plate Final

With Kulabu out of the way, the match between Nondies and Strathmore finally kicked off proper. The two battled to the end as the Leos sneaked away with the title, 14-12. The Leos started off the season superbly, picking up the Dala title but found it hard to match that feat in the next four legs. Three stints in the Plate and a third place finish only good enough to see the side finish in third with 77 points.

The third place play off saw Homeboyz battle past a stubborn Impala side, 12-7 to claim third spot. The Djs completed their most successful sevens season yet, finishing in 4th spot on 76 points, with the Kabeberi title the icing on their cake. Impala also had a great run this season, though they failed to pick up a title, they improved greatly from last season. The red shirts finishing in 5th on 72 points, courtesy of a Plate tile, a cup runners up medal, two fourth place finishes and a Plate semi final.

Action from Impala vs Homeboyz

The big one was a hand over ceremony of sorts, as the immediate former series champions met the champions in waiting, KCB. It was also a reversal of roles, as during the previous season the two met in the final of the last leg of the series with Quins already having sealed the circuit title.

The match kicked off with the Lions defending well against the early wave of attacks, KCB skipper Andrew Amonde picked a turn over ball to sprint the better part of 60 meters and go over for the first try of the match. Edwin Salamba made it 12-0 after Olando's conversion as the match hit the half way mark in the first half. 

Andrew Amonde charging for the line (fotogeric)

Eden Agero would single handedly drag Quins back into the match, two quick tries and a conversion brining the match back level 12 all at the half time break.

The second half begun with the Lions on the prowl as they wasted saw several scoring opportunities go begging. Amonde again came to his team's rescue barging over the white chalk to give his side a 17-12 lead. A lead the green shirts would hold on to till the final whistle and claim the day's double.

Phillip Wamae in action against Quins (fotogeric)

Quins finished in second on 82 points, in a season that saw the quartered shirts pick up steadily in the first three legs before slipping up in Nakuru to play in the Plate, picking themselves up to reach the cup final in their backyard. Quins will be disappointed by the fact that they failed defend their series crown and more so to pick up a single title. However looking at the squad they fielded the quartered shirts can be proud of their achievement.

It was the perfect ending to the best sevens season the Lions have ever had, 3 titles, a third place finish and a Plate title enough to secure the green shirts their maiden sevens title. In the most competitive sevens season to date, KCB managed to hold their own and emerge top of the pile.

The Lion's triumph was down to consistency, squad depth and playing the basics. In a season where teams failed to keep their form going, KCB slipped up once in Kabeberi and never looked back, picking up the 3 titles that followed.

KCB was the only side in the series that had the luxury changing their 12 man squad and still keep the results constant. The side that picked up the Driftwood title had 5 changes from the one that played in Kabeberi, the side that won in Nakuru had a similar number of changes.

Their depth was further evident from the bench, where changes did not affect the general shape, Benjamin Ojema replaced by Kennedy Moseti, the explosive Fabian Olando usually making way for the equally damaging Brian Omondi, Stafford Abeka mostly coming in for Phillip Wamae, Darwin Mukidza and Jacob Ojee trading places at the wing.

The technical bench of Curtis Olago and Mike Shamia established a simple game plan that was grounded on the basics, making it easy for the players to stick to it. 

Jacob Ojee picked up the series' Most promising player and many agree that it is just a matter of time before he puts on the national colours. His combination with Fabian Olando was key to KCB's triumph.

Jacob Ojee receiving his cash reward.

Homeboyz pair of Augustine Lughonzo and Leornard Mugaisi picking up the series Top points and top try scorer respectively. The duo alongside Oscar Ayodi have been vital for the Djs through out the season.

Finally I would like to leave you with my Series Dream team, remember the team is picked purely on performance over the 5 legs, as always feel free to post yours in the comments section.

1. Tony Owuor - Strathmore

2. Robert Aringo - Impala

3. Andrew Amonde - KCB

4. Felix Ayange - Quins

5. Augustine Lughonzo - Homeboyz

6. Fabian Olando - KCB

7. Jacob Ojee - KCB

8. Joshua Chisanga - Homeboyz

9. Dan Sikuta - Mwamba

10. Eden Agero - Quins

11. Billy Odhiambo - Strathmore

12. Leornard Mugaisi - Homeboyz

Was a tough call settling for these 12, especially at the forwards seeing as I have left out the likes of Horace Otieno, Phillip Wamae, Davis Chenge, Ian Indimuli all of who had a great season. Others that failed to make the cut by a whisker are Benjamin Ojema of KCB, Oscar Ayodi of Homeboyz, Sammy Oliech of Impala, Teddy Salano of Nondies among a host of others.

It is evident that the game of sevens has grown exponentially over the last year or so, to see the likes of Daystar reaching the cup quarter final, not once but twice is testament to the same. The flooding of sponsors can only mean that the series will get even more competitive and attractive.

A big shout to all those whose diaries over the last 2 months read, Machakos - Kisumu - Nairobi - Mombasa - Nakuru - Nairobi, players or otherwise, you made this series the best ever. Let us now get ready for Africa's premier rugby sevens tournament....The Safari Sevens! Where the top eight sides from the series will feature in the newly formed Club category. 

With that ladies and gentlemen.....

KWISHA...Nimeruka Nje!