Kenya has been drawn in perhaps the toughest pool for the sixth leg of the International Rugby Board Sevens World Series in Adelaide, South Australia, on April 5 and 6.
Seeded fifth, Kenya is in Pool D with Fiji, England and France which are all core teams for the IRB Sevens World Series Circuit. "It can only get tougher," coach Benjamin Ayimba said on Wednesday. But he added that Kenya relished a challenge from any of the core teams. Felix Ochieng' his assistant agreed. "It is competitive because England and France have a point to prove. The focus will be on minimising the mistakes and getting the right combination. It is the Pool of Death," the assistant coach acknowledged.
"Having four core teams is the ultimate test. It will be interesting to meet England again in Adelaide where we first beat them for the first time," said Humphrey Kayange who captained Kenya for the last two legs of the IRB Sevens World Series in New Zealand and USA.
Identical 17-7 margins
The team resumes training on Saturday. Ochieng' clarified the absence of one of the alternate captains Innocent Simiyu from the last two tournaments. "He is still an integral part of the squad. Because of job and school commitments, he was not available. It takes sometime to settle into a new job," Ochieng said.This season, Kenya has met Fiji in George, South Africa and lost 12-24. They also met France in Wellington and won 19-0. Kenya has beaten England twice this season by an identical 17-7 margins in South Africa and USA. The rivalry with England has been intense. In San Diego, England declined to share a changing room with Kenya and in South Africa, England had the writing 'Whoever is dreaming of beating England should wake up' in front of the player's tent which was facing Kenya's.
Draw
Pool A: New Zealand, Scotland, Argentina, Cook Islands; Pool B: Samoa, Tonga, Wales, Japan; Pool C: South Africa, Australia, USA, Canada; Pool D: Fiji, Kenya, England, France.
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