Kabras, Nakuru RFC coaches reflect on weekend's duel

Kabras and Nakuru RFC coaches Carlos Kyatwa and Kennedy Njoroge have shared their insights after the Kenya Cup week seven action that took place at the ASK Kakamega Showground on Saturday, February 3rd.

The Sugarmen continued with their impressive run this campaign, defeating Nakuru RFC 66-7 in the rain-soaked match.

They scored through Brian Juma, Matthias Osimbo, Patrick Lumumba, Brian Mutua, Alfred Orege, and Eugene Sifuna. Their opponents scored their sole try courtesy of Roy Inandwa, and Philip Okeyo added the extras.

Nakuru became the second team to score a try against the Sugarmen after Kisumu RFC.

Reflecting on the weekend, Kabras RFC coach noted that his charges committed handling errors, which denied them major points. He observed that the rainy weather also posed a challenge to the boys.

"The guys are adapting to the new system. There was a distraction from the rain. It has been a while since it rained in Kakamega," he started.

"Handling errors was a problem in the opening minutes. We lost five tries," he continued.

The coach, however, remained optimistic, noting that the unexpected rain served as an opportunity for the players to adapt, learn, and enhance their versatility in handling diverse playing conditions. He also lauded their fitness level and defense, noting that it was an essential ingredient for their win.

"It is a learning curve to understand that we should be able to play in all different types of weather. Our set pieces did not work as well. When it came to the scrums, Nakuru were out to play. They dominated a few of our scrums. There was a lapse of concentration among the players. But we will sit down and discuss the way forward," he observed.

Rui Vitoria sacked by Egypt after AFCON failure

On his side, 28-year-old Njoroge admitted that the Sugarmen were well-conditioned and prepared for the task.

"It was a tough one. Kabras RFC is a good side," he offered.

Despite that, he noted that his charges put their best foot forward, but the lack of experience of some of his green players made it difficult for them to score against the high-spirited Kabras at their home ground. He observed that they needed to work on their striking power to compete at higher levels.

"We missed several chances in the second half, but that is because of the inexperience of some of our players. We visited our green zone five times, but we did not score. We have to put a lot of work into our striking power," he told Mozzart Sport.

Njoroge was further pleased with the overall improvement of his charges. He was glad that they gave Kabras a headache at the scrums and lineouts.

"We have improved our set pieces. For instance, we were good in lineouts, and we managed to get penalties on their scrums. We have to work on our attacking and defense," he concluded.

Kabras will be out to extend their fine run when they travel to the Kenyatta University Grounds in Nairobi to tackle Blak Blad while Nakuru welcome Nondies in Kenya Cup week eight action.

Benson Omala set to move to Algeria