Roaring Lionesses eye Africa Cup Sevens glory

Kenya’s rugby sevens women team will relish their chances of winning this year’s edition of the Africa Cup Sevens to take place in Gaborone, Botswana on May 26/27.

The Lionesses under coach Kelvin Wambua will battle it out in Pool ‘A’ alongside Madagascar and Senegal, with winning the crown being the top goal.

In the last five years, Lionesses have come agonizingly close, reaching finals in four occasions, but have failed to bite the cherry.

Speaking to Citizen Digital, Wambua said he expects a competitive tournament in Botswana, adding that the girls will use the tournament to better their last performance in Australia.

With the withdrawal of defending champions South Africa, who opted to miss this year’s edition to prepare for the World Cup, Lionesses have the best chance to win the tourney, having recorded good performances in the past.

“We learned some lessons in our past outings of which we have rectified and I believe we can go all the way and win this year’s tournament,” Wambua charged

Kenya lost a chance to play in the World Cup last year after they lost to Lady Britzbokke 17-12 in Monstair, Tunisia.

They faced Madagascar in the group stages in the last edition winning 27-5 against their opponent.

This year though, the Lionesses had mixed results, reaching the semi finals of the Hong Kong Sevens and finishing seventh in the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Australia.

“We must improve in our breakdown and accuracy while going forward, so as to match the game of our opponents since every team has its own playing styles.”

Kenya has already sent a warning message to the entire Africa after they made a name after outclassing bitter rivals South Africa 24-12 for the first time in the group stages of Hong Kong Sevens.

Lionesses have experienced players to stir them to victory, with the likes of Janet Okello, Sinaida Aura, Doreen Remour and Celestine Masinde, who gave spectacular performances in both the Hong Kong Sevens and Commonwealth Games.

With this rich pool of talent, Wambua plans to blend the established names and young talents.

Tunisia is in Pool ‘B’ with Uganda and Zimbabwe, while Pool ‘C’ features Morocco, hosts Botswana, Mauritius and Zambia.

AFRICA CUP SEVENS POOLS

Pool A: Kenya, Madagascar, Senegal

Pool B: Tunisia, Uganda, Zimbabwe

Pool C: Morocco, Botswana, Mauritius, Zambia

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Botswana Lionesses Africa Cup[ Sevens Gaborone Kelvin Wambua

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