Njoroge aiming for the stars with Nakuru RFC in 2023/24 season

Nakuru RFC head coach, Kennedy Njoroge, has vowed to enhance the team’s performance in the upcoming 2023–24 Kenya Cup season.

The tactician is making a comeback to the team after leading them to impressive heights in 2023. He joined Nakuru from the Menengai Oilers on December 17, 2022.

His primary mission was to restore the reins of Wanyore, who were on the verge of relegation following a lackluster performance in the 2021/22 Kenya Cup season. The coach then steered the team to a sixth-place finish in the 2022–23 Kenya Cup season after narrowly missing the playoffs.

Their fine form continued into the 2023 National 7s Circuit, where Nakuru reached four quarterfinals, one semifinal, and a final appearance to finish seventh overall with 68 points. They concluded their season on a high note by qualifying for the Kabeberi 7s finals, where they were defeated 26-0 by KCB Rugby.

However, they began the 2023/24 Kenya Cup season on a low note, suffering three losses, securing one win, and sharing spoils once. They received a 27-24 beating from the Strathmore Leos in the opening match before defeating Kisumu 25-20. In their final match of the year, they shared a 19-19 draw with Blak Blad.

The team has not experienced a loss this year, going down 19-8 to crosstown neighbors the Oilers in the year opener, followed by their recent 24-5 loss to Kenya Harlequin.

Speaking to Mozzart Sport after the rain-soaked match, Njoroge noted that he was back at the steering wheel and that fans should expect the best from the team.

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Despite the loss, he pointed out that the team learned necessary lessons moving forward.

“This is the first game, but I have identified areas for improvement, especially sharpening our defense and attack for the next matches,” he began.

The Nakuru-based team started the match on a low footing, managing only a try against the Quins. However, they got into the game in the second half and did not concede a single point.

“We started a little slow. We could not get into the game in the first quarter, but we tried to get into the game in the second half because we did not concede any tries in the final half. We need to work on our finishing in the green zone, especially clarity,” he continued.

The team will face KCB Rugby in their next Kenya Cup match, slated for January 27. The coach noted that he anticipated an uphill task but expressed confidence that his charges would pick up points from the duel.

“We have some difficult games coming up, so we need points from them. The second-half performance showed what we are capable of, and we will build on that,” he concluded.

The 27-year-old recently achieved a commendable feat as a World Rugby (7s) Level II accredited coach. His CV still includes winning the 2017 Kenya Secondary Schools Sports Association (KSSSA) rugby 7s title with Menengai High School, as well as coming in third in the 2018 Federation of East Africa Secondary Schools Association (FEASSSA) rugby 15s games with the school.

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