Ocholla: Time for transition in Shujaa team after Tokyo Olympics

Former Kenya Sevens head coach Mitch Ocholla says there is a need to plan for transition in the national team after the team finished ninth at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

Ocholla who is also the head coach of Impala Saracens says the team should be ‘humble’ and begin preparations for the HSBC circuit with an honest evaluation of their level.

“The results are out and there is nothing we can do about it but the key thing now is to gel the experienced players with the rookies because it’s true age is catching up with most of the players in Tokyo,” said Ocholla.

His sentiments have been backed by Dan Sikuta who was in the training squad for the 2016 Rio Olympics saying the team should have a blend of experienced and rookie players.

Shujaa won two matches in Tokyo finishing ninth, two places above their performance in Rio 2016.

“Transition is good in the system but not at once. It should be progressive because you remember in 2018 the team was almost relegated in the HSBC after the experienced players pulled out. The transition should be meticulously done to help build a strong team in future,” said Sikuta.

Captain Andrew Amonde who retired after their last match in Tokyo said the future generations should learn from their mistakes.

“When we needed to defend we didn’t defend well, when we needed to score we didn’t score, so it’s something we can deal work on in the future, so the team which will come in future will learn from our mistakes,” noted Amonde

Shujaa won two matches in Tokyo finishing 9th, two places above their performance in Rio 2016.