Namcos’ side kicked off on a frightening note with 58-0 win against Nigeria Stallions
Shujaa on Sunday beat Germany 12-5 to reclaim the Safari Sevens trophy after last winning it in 2016.
Innocent “Namcos” Simiyu’s side kicked off the competition on a frightening note with 58-0 win against Nigeria Stallions but the second match of the day against Germany had unforeseen repercussions when Johnstone Olindi spilled the ball in the scoring zone to see the team lose by a conversion.
They however bounced back to make a direct main cup quarter cut thanks to a 26-5 win over Zimbabwe Cheetahs.
The quarter-finals match was a closely contested “Migingo Derby” with Shujaa clinching three tries against two by Uganda who had earlier condemned Morans 24-0 in a shocking day one match.
The other quarter-finals action saw Red Wailers overcome KCB 21-10 as Germany shocked Zimbabwe 31-14 while Moran’s conversion rate overcame the cunning Samurai 21-17.
In the semi-finals, defending champions Kenya Morans were no match for their Kenyan opponents Shujaa who converted all their three tries while Morans only managed one to give Shujaa a chance not only for redemption against Germany but to reclaim the title lastly won in 2016.
In the finals, Olindi wrote off his day one sins when he set up Alvin Otieno to score the opening try after breaking out of the 22 zone with an own brilliant kick and chase and converted to see Shujaa go 7-0 up.
Namco’s playing unit was tested when it was reduced to six men off a yellow card but the spirited hosts backed up by loyal fans took brotherly shifts to defend territory while skipper Herman Humwa was pumped up for a big carry to crack open a path for Johnstone Olindi to score after Humwa was stopped a step to the try line.
Olindi picked the ball and scored but conversion by Levy Amunga went wide to end the match 12-5.
The event was crucial for the sevens head coach Innocent Simiyu who is expected to make a selection for the incoming closed-door Dubai 7s invitational tourney on November 26-27 followed by Dubai 7s HSBC leg on December 2-4 with fans in attendance.
In the past decade, the Safari Sevens, also known as Robin Cahill, has not been played twice in 2017 and 2020.
In 2017 it was due to unpredictable political climate due to the general elections re-run while in 2020 the coronavirus pandemic struck.
