Rugby Africa Men’s 7s: Morans finish sixth after loss to Zimbabwe

Kenya Morans finished sixth in the Africa Men’s 7s after a 28-19 defeat to Zimbabwe Cheetahs in the fifth-place playoff at Labourdonnais Sports Grounds, Mauritius.

Kenya's opening kick-off failed to travel the required 10 meters, giving Zimbabwe possession.

Mandaza capitalized by scoring the opening try, which was successfully converted for a 7-0 lead.

The Cheetahs extended their advantage to 14-0 when they broke through Kenya’s defense following a kick, with Musumhi adding the conversion.

William Mwanji responded for Kenya, breaking through Zimbabwe’s defense to score a try, although it went unconverted.

In the second half, Kenya breached Zimbabwe’s defense again, with Victor Odhiambo scoring and Festus Shiasi converting to narrow the gap to 14-12.

Zimbabwe then widened their lead with a try from Edward Sigauke, converted by Musumhi, bringing the score to 21-12.

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Joel Inzuga gave Kenya hope by diving over for a converted try, making it 21-19.

However, Kenya couldn’t contain Sigauke, who broke away to score under the posts, securing a 28-19 victory for Zimbabwe. Kenya now turns its attention to the second leg set for next weekend at the same venue.

Morans’ run in Mauritius

The Kenyans headed to this tournament as the defending champions. They started their campaign on a high, seeing off hosts Mauritius 40-0 before defeating Nigeria 25-0 in the second pool match.

Their two-match winning streak was ended by Madagascar who narrowly defeated them 7-5 in the final pool match.

At the quarterfinal stage, the Kenyans failed to sparkle, going down 12-7 to South Africa. This was a repeat of the 2023 Rugby Africa Men’s Cup final where Kenya edged South Africa 17-12.

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The result saw them drop to the fifth-place playoff where they defeated Ivory Coast 22-5 to proceed to the fifth-place finals.

At the final stage, they were weighed down by Zimbabwe to finish their campaign at position six.

Despite the loss, the Morans who serve as the Shujaa feeder team have learned lessons that they will apply in the upcoming tournaments.

About 2024 Africa Men's 7s

The tournament's format this year is unique. It will be held over two weekends; this weekend and July 6-7. This extended format presents both opportunities and challenges.

The overall winner will be determined by the points accumulated across the two rounds.

Teams’ finishing positions after the knockout phase will earn ranking points, which will be used for seeding in the second round's pool draw.

The top two ranked teams after both rounds will qualify for the 2025 World Rugby 7s Challenger Series.