A recap of 2024 Kenya Cup action that saw Kabras extend their dominance
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Reading Time: 8min | Sun. 29.12.24. | 17:24
Meanwhile, Kabras RFC continued their dominance, maintaining their status as the team to beat, while KCB Rugby entered a rebuilding phase.
The 2024 Kenya Cup season has been a rollercoaster of emotions, marked by dramatic highs and lows.
Homeboyz Rugby's relegation after over a decade in the top tier was a major shake-up, with Catholic University of East Africa (CUEA) Monks also facing the drop.
Meanwhile, Kabras RFC continued their dominance, maintaining their status as the team to beat, while KCB Rugby entered a rebuilding phase.
The promotion of Impala Saracens and South Coast Pirates injected fresh energy into the competition, and Mwamba RFC celebrated a historic milestone by securing a permanent home ground.
Mozzart Sport delves into the key moments and narratives that defined an unforgettable year.
2024/25 Kenya Cup season kicks off
The 2024/25 Kenya Cup season kicked off on Saturday 23 November. The kickoff was initially slated for November 16 but was pushed forward by a week.
Teams played three matches and the Enterprise Cup pre-quarter stage match before breaking for the holidays.
Enterprise Cup played concurrently with the Kenya Cup
This year marks the first time since the 2019/20 season that the tournament runs concurrently with the Kenya Cup. The previous years saw the former come after the Kenya Cup finals.
The Enterprise Cup pre-quarterfinal stages happened on Saturday 14 December.
The quarterfinals are scheduled for 8 February, the semi-finals for 8 March, and the final for 22 April.
The Enterprise Cup, which made its much-anticipated return in 2023, has faced challenges with some teams giving walkovers.
The 2019/20 season was halted before the semi-finals due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Kabras RFC will aim to defend their title after an impressive 32-20 victory over arch-rivals KCB in the 2023 final held at RFUEA Grounds.
Menengai Oilers win maiden Impala Floodlights title.
History was rewritten on Saturday 2 November at the Impala Grounds after Menengai Oilers clinched their maiden Impala Floodlit Tournament title.
The Gibson Weru-coached side secured the title with a dominant performance against the host team, Impala RFC.
Homeboyz relegated from the Kenya Cup
2024 will go down in history as one of the worst years for Homeboyz Rugby who were relegated from the Kenya Cup league for the first time after 13 years.
The team popularly known as the Deejayz have been in their poorest form this season. They had been on a 16-match winless streak since mid-January 2023.
Homeboyz only managed a draw last season with their last win coming on 14 January 2023 when they beat Mean Machine 31-7 in the 2022/23.
Their relegation was confirmed after they dished out a walkover to Mwamba RFC in the Kenya Cup week 10 action. That saw them deducted two points, leaving them with zero points.
South Coast Pirates, Impala promoted to the top tier
South Coast Pirates claimed their maiden Kenya Cup slot with a 30-15 result over Daystar Falcons, with Impala booking their ticket back to the top flight courtesy of a hard-fought 12-11 win over Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology.
Kabras RFC’s dominance
Threepeat Kenya Cup champions Kabras RFCs have continued to dominate. This year, they won the Kenya Cup title after defeating KCB Rugby 29-5 in the Kenya Cup final played at Kakamega Showground to achieve a historic three-peat in their 10th season.
A three-peat saw the Sugarmen join the elites Impala, Kenya Harlequin, Nondies, and KCB Rugby who have won the three-peat since 1970. They also won their third Enterprise Cup title.
The Carlos Kyatwa-coached side currently tops the log with 15 points amassed from the three matches played during the 2024/25 season.
They began their campaign with a 33-6 win over Impala RFC in the rain-disrupted match. Following heavy rains that pounded in the second half, the match had to be halted with almost 19 minutes to play. The regulations state that in a scenario where three-quarters of the match is played, the leading team earns the win.
They would then pick a 45-3 win over Kenya Cup newbies South Coast Pirates to extend their fine form. They ended their 2024 Kenya Cup campaign by heaping a 137-7 misery on helpless Kisumu RFC.
They received a walkover from Kisumu RFC in the Enterprise Cup prequarter stage match.
KCB Rugby rebuilding
The Bankers admitted to being in their rebuilding phase. They have not won any major ttitlesthis year.
Despite that, they have registered impressive results in the matches played in the 2024/25 season. The results have left no doubt about their intentions this season.
They kicked off their Kenya Cup campaign with a commanding 95-5 victory over South Coast Pirates before edging Kisumu RFC 82-3. They defeated Strathmore Leos 43-5 in their final Kenya Cup match. The Bankers ended the year with an 89-7 victory over Mwamba RFC in the Enterprise Cup pre-quarters.
They will start the new year with a match against Mwamba RFC as they seek to re-establish their dominance.
Menengai Oilers are a force to be reckoned with
Gibson Weru’s charges have been in sleek form this year. The side won their maiden Impala Floodlights title in November after defeating hosts Impala 42-3.
They carried that energy to the new season, seeing off Kisumu RFC 78-13 in their Kenya Cup opener. They then defeated Strathmore Leos 38-8 before thrashing Mwamba RFC 94-9 in the final Keya Cup match of the year. They then handed Daystar University baptism by fire, edging them 80-17 to end a glorious year. They will be keen to start 2025 with that same energy.
Their best Kenya Cup performance was during the 2022/23 season when they reached the final stage but went down 34-28 to Kabras RFC. They will be keen to replicate that this season.
"Our immediate target is to improve and keep making steps forward. Kaizen, a step at a time. We know our opponents, like Kabras RFC, present a different kind of mental game, but we’ll figure out how to compete against them this season," Weru told Mozzart Sport in a past interview.
Kenya Harlequin is a joy to behold
The Quin's recent performances have sent a message to the rugby world; they are a force to be reckoned with.
Coach Paul Murunga took over the team after the conclusion of the 2021/22 season when they were flirting with relegation. He led them against the odds to the semifinal stage where they were defeated by Kabras RFC in the 2022/23 season.
Last season, they ended their campaign at position four after falling to Nondies RFC at the quarterfinal stage but that did not stop them from growing.
They came into 2024 with renewed energy, to win the National 7s Circuit title after dazzling performances throughout the six legs.
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They have won all their Kenya Cup matches since the 2024/25 season kicked off. They also registered an overwhelming 62-8 victory over Strathmore Leos in the Enterprise Cup pre-quarters stage.
Part of their big plan is to win the 2024/25 Kenya Cup title.
While it may seem like a far-fetched dream, Quins have achieved this feat before. Not once, not twice, but in eight different years (1995, 1996, 1999, 2003, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012).
They will be keen to register a ninth victory this season.
The team is made up of youngsters who play their hearts out, and it will be thrilling to watch what they have in store this season.
Strathmore Leos’ 15s struggles continue
The Leos have registered underwhelming performance since the season kicked off. They have failed to win a single match and lost their Enterprise pre-quarter match. While they are a force to be reckoned with in the shorter version of the game, their performance in the 15s version is alarming.
Their coach Louis Kisia left the students to join Impala RFC and it is a matter of whether they will find another tactician to fit in Kisia’s shoes.
KU Blak Blad shines through
The students were never disappointed when it came to giving their all in the match. They have only lost a single match against Quins. They dished a walkover to South Coast Pirates in the Enterprise Cup pre-quarters match due to the lack of resources.
They will be looking to start the new year on a high note.
Kisumu, Nakuru flirting with relegation?
While it might be too early to ask this, Kisumu and Nakuru RFC’s recent performances have left this question in fans’ minds.
Over the past two seasons, Kisumu has parted ways with two able tacticians; Lawi Buyachi and Oscar Okaron who had all it took to lead them to glory.
The resignation of able players like Malik Habil who joined them from Kabras RFC further adds to their woes. They lost all their Kenya Cup opening matches and dished a walkover to Kabras RFC in the Enterprise Cup.
With complaints from insiders on matters management, the team needs to go back to the drawing board to survive the intensity of the top tier. They currently sit bottom of the log without a single point.
Nakuru RFC too have not won a single Kenya Cup match since the season kicked off. They also narrowly lost their Enterprise Cup match 16-15 to the Catholic University of East Africa (CUEA) Monks. With a history of impressive performances, it is a matter of wait-and-see if they will bounce back to winning ways.
Impala, Mwamba eyeing improvement
While they have not had a perfect start to the season, these two teams are promising.
Mwamba finally secured a permanent training ground after partnering with Goan Institute, which will be their training ground from January 1, 2025. They also brought in the services of former KCB Rugby coach Mark Mshila and revamped their coaching staff.
They will be hoping to start the year on a high note.
Impala RFC too is a team to watch this season. They were recently promoted to the top tier after a season in the cold. They also made improvements in their coaching staff, including bringing in Kenya 7s assistant coach Louis Kisia.
The side reached the final of the Impala Floodlights where they went down to Menengai Oilers but that showcased their fighting spirit. They will unveil new jerseys next year as they hope to bounce back to winning ways.
