Strong start for Simiyu and Shujaa at Safland Sevens

Innocent ‘Namcos’ Simiyu got his tenure as Kenya 7s Shujaa head coach off to a racing start after his charges swept to three resounding wins on the opening day of the Safland Sevens Tournament played at The Dome in Swakopmund, Namibia on Saturday.

The Shujaa thrashed hosts Namibia 29-5 in their opener before demolishing South Africa All Stars 40-7 in their second match of the day.

Germany gave Simiyu’s charges a stiffer contest but were equally put to the sword, suffering 24-5 defeat as Shujaa romped to their third win.

Against the Germans, Shujaa took a deserved 19-0 lead with Derrick Mayar, Frank Wanyama and Leonard Mugaisi on the points.

It was not until the second half that Germany made their first try through Henrik Meyer but Shujaa offered their response quickly to restored their 19-point lead and eventually won 24-5.

Mugaisi and Willy Ambaka each touched down twice in the 40-7 thumping of All Stars with the clinical Brian Tanga converting all their tries to ensure the Andrew Amonde captained side took a 28-0 lead into the break before adding two more touchdowns in the second half.

The All Stars got their first try later on but it only served as a consolation as Neslon Oyoo took the tie beyond reach with a converted try.

In their last pool match, Shujaa play defending champions South Africa – who equally won all their three opening day fixtures – in what is certainly the highlight clash of the pool.

The match will start at 11:40am local time with the knock-out phase of the competition set to start at 12:00pm.