Kenya 7s drops as Fiji rule in London

Kenya 7s dropped one place in World Sevens Series standings after London 7s where they picked only one point on Sunday, May 26.

Kenya lost 26-17 to relegation rivals Japan in the Challenge Trophy semis on Sunday morning- which guarantees only one point. That was after they had lost 29-21 to Scotland in the Challenge trophy quarters.

In the defeat to Japan, Kenya had fallen 14-0 down after Naoki Motomura and Sakai Katsuyuki’s converted tries before Homeboyz duo of Bush Mwale and Jeff Oluoch went over with Johnstone Olindi adding the extras.

Kenya would take a lead for the first time as Mwale completed his brace but Japan added 12 more points courtesy of Fujita Yoshikazu and Kazushi Hano’s tries.

Going to next weekend’s Paris 7s, Kenya 7s is now 14th with 27 points, two above Japan who occupy the last and relegation spot. Wales went above Kenya to 13th with 30 points.

The least ranked team after Paris 7s will be relegated and replaced by Ireland.

In the French capital, Kenya 7s is in pool B with London 7s runners up to Australia, South Africa and Wales. Japan is in Pool D with France, New Zealand and Scotland.

Day one matches saw Kenya lose 17-24 to Fiji and 17-31 to France but managed to put 21-20 past Samoa.

Fiji put a masterclass performance to beat Australia 43-7 and retain the London 7s title. It was the biggest winning margin at London 7s since 2006 and the second biggest this season(since 38-0 in Hamilton).

It was Fiji’s 40th gold medal in series history and few would have been this majestic. Head coach Gareth Baber said: “It’s pretty special when you see it like that. We found it tough in the first four or five minutes as they are tough to play against and we needed to put points on the board. That’s how we want to see rugby played.”

The USA, who finished third in London, is second in World series standings with 162 points, just two behind Fiji.

New Zealand and South Africa close the top four with 143 and 131 points with all four sides confirming a place in next year’s Tokyo Olympics.

Paris 7s Draw
Pool A: Fiji, Ireland, Argentina, England
Pool B: Australia, South Africa, Wales, Kenya
Pool C: USA, Canada, Samoa, Spain
Pool D: France, New Zealand, Scotland, Japan

World Sevens Series Table
1.Fiji 164
2.USA 162
3.New Zealand 143
4.South Africa 131
5.England 109
6.Australia 99
7.Samoa 95
8.France 86
9.Argentina 84
10.Scotland 69
11.Canada 51
12.Spain 48
13.Wales 30
14.Kenya 27
15.Japan 25

–World Rugby Reports