Simba XVs de-feather Cranes for Elgon Cup glory

Kenya Simbas XVs completed their ruthless revenge of last year’s loss to Uganda Cranes by crushing the visitors 45-24 to reclaim the Elgon Cup at RFUEA Grounds in Nairobi.

Simba who mauled the visitors 48-10 in the first leg thus completed a 93-34 aggregate demolition in one of the most lopsided Elgon Cup clashes in the history of the archrivals.

It was an entertaining encounter which saw Impala Saracens veteran, Innocent Simiyu make his first appearance in a Kenyan shirt since 2010.

Buoyed by a partisan home crowd, Simbas opened the scores with a try by Nondescripts forward Ronnie Mwenesi with Darwin Mukidza converting it for a 7-0 lead.

David Ambunya scored the second try but Mukidza missed the conversion before Uganda’s vice-captain, Phillip Wokorach led by example and gave the visitors a sniff of an improbable comeback with two quick tries to give the Cranes a 14-12 the advantage.

Mukidza restored the lead for the 24th ranked team in the World scoring a penalty to make it 15-14.

Coach Jerome Paarwaters’ men went further ahead when Mike Okombe pushing a try in succession, Mukidza who scored a hat trick against the opponents in the first leg drifting away the conversion to make it 23-19 for the home team.

The referee called for an infringement just before halftime but the Brian Nyikuli captained team held on their lead to halftime.

With a 23-19 home lead, Kenya, the winners of the first leg in Uganda, scored the first try of the second half with KCB’s Mukidza converting it.

Key man Michael Wokoras brightened Cranes chances after the setback in the second half, when he ran through the Kenya back-line to touch down at the right corner flag to make it 24-33.

The visitors tried to come back but it was the home team party by full time, when last year’s finalists won the match 45-24.

The team now focuses on a friendly match against Hong Kong on August.