Rugby 15’s team rues missed chances
Kenya 15s rugby captain Wilson K’opondo has blamed the team’s 14-29 loss to Zimbabwe’s Sables to a poor first half show from his side in the Draught Tri-Nations Tournament .
The Sables drew first blood through winger Tengai Nemadire, with Lenience Tambwera converting for a 7-0 lead.
Tambwera’s added three penalties before Nemadire landed his second try for a 26-0 half time lead.
Kenya’s Lions hogged possession in the second half, with two tries from Nakuru RFC prop Isaiah Nyariki who was making his first full international debut, and KCB second row Oliver Mageni.
Strathmore Leo’s fly-half Kenny Andola converted both tries before Zimbabwe’s Tambwera killed off the game with a penalty.
“Zimbabwe settled earlier than us and pumped in their points early. We came back stronger in the second half but it was difficult chasing the game. Perhaps losing two key players early in the game also took a toll on us,” said K’opondo on phone from Windhoek.
He added that the team has already embarked on correcting their mistakes from the Zimbabwe game, and will work on scoring early against Namibia on Saturday.
Head Coach Jerome Paarwater reiterated K’opondo, and added that several missed chances also cost the team a come from behind victory.
“The amount of try scoring chances eventually proved costly. We now regroup and ready ourselves for the match against Namibia,” he said after the game.
Kenya play their second game against Namibia on Saturday at the Heine Geingob Stadium. The tournament is being used by the three teams as a warm up for next year’s World Cup qualifiers.
The trio, alongside Madagascar, will battle for the only remaining slot at the 2015 Rugby World Cup in England and Wales, in a round robin tournament in Antananarivo, Madagascar.