Odongo stars as Shujaa lift HSBC Challenger Series in Dubai

Patrick Odongo was once again in a class of his own as he led his Kenya Sevens team to clinching the World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger Series opening leg in Dubai on Sunday 14 January.

The Kenyan speedster touched down two tries in Kenya's 12-5 win over Chile at the Sevens Stadium, seeing them win all but one of their games that kicked off on Friday.

In the opening minutes of the clash, Kenya dominated, with Odongo the opening try on the left wing.

The try extended Odongo’s tally to 10 tries for the weekend.

Chile responded with a five pointer when Benjamin Videla touched down for an unconverted try heading to half time.

The final half was a physically brutal affair but Shujaa kept their fine form going.

Nygel Amaitsa once again executed a well-worked out grubber kick, and Odongo, showing his prowess, collecting the ball and scored the crucial try.

That try marked Odongo’s 11th try of the tournament, and a winner for Kenya, who now are in a commanding position in the three-round competition.

About HSBC Challenger Series

The HSBC Sevens Challenger 2024 will take place in three rounds on three continents between January and May, providing a clear promotion pathway to reach the pinnacle of HSBC SVNS in 2025.

The top four placed men’s and women’s World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger 2024 teams, based on cumulative series points after the third round, will secure their opportunity to compete in the new high-stakes promotion and relegation play-off competition at the SVNS Grand Final in Madrid on 31 May – 2 June 2024 against the teams ranked ninth to 12th from HSBC SVNS 2024.

Lionesses suffer finals loss

Elsewhere in the women's final earlier in the afternoon, Kenya Lionesses fell 19-5 to China, seeing them finish second in the competition after a fantastic run that saw them beat Argentina 17-0 in the semifinals.

Shujaa Results

Kenya 41-0 Mexico

Uganda 29-7 Uganda

Germany 24-12 Kenya

Kenya 21-19 Japan

Kenya 21-5 Uruguay

Kenya 12-5 Chile