Seven things that actually happened at Masaku 7s
1. Samurai Wakulima proved one thing, put prize money, good prize money, on any tournament and you are about to attract the best talent in the sport.
Samurai Wakulima was full of experienced Kenya 7s players and they breezed through the tournament without breaking any sweat. Fully deserved winners but also good value for fans money.
2. This year’s attendance was slightly lower than last year’s probably because of bad press the 2014 edition suffered.
But as usual, the numbers inside the stadium where the games were being played were much lower than that of the Village where it was all happening. Masaku 7s is fast becoming a social gig with rugby as a sideshow.
3. Then there were choppers landing, interrupting matches. Rugby pusrists were livid when the flamboyant Machakos Governor Dr Alfred Mutua landed in a chopper mid match.
The hay that broke the camel’s back was when one of the stoppers decided to hop in a fan on a second chopper rudely interrupting a match. The rugby lovers completely lost it, even some organisers were livid. It’s an unspoken rule that a rugby match shouldn’t be interrupted with such sideshows!
4. Masaku 7s 2015 once again lived to its expectations as the ultimate social gig outside of Nairobi. The after party rocked! Dj Joe Mfalme, Rabbit among others kept revelers (or were they fans?) on their feet throughout the night. Too many tired bodies meant that Day Two attendance would be much lower.
5. We understand that KCB were sponsors of the tournament, but forcing fans to purchase Pepea Card was a a bit too much. Many fans would have wished to come to the gates, pay and enter without being subjected to bureaucratic process of signing up for the card. Personal data is and should be private.
6. The organisers promised what they couldn’t deliver. During the run up to the tournament, it was hyped as international tournament with teams from as far as Fiji, Argentina and Norway all “confirmed” participants. But all we got is a festival side from France as the only foreign team and a host of local clubs. Don’t sell what you won’t deliver.
7. Lastly, let’s wait and see googled images of ratchetry from different parts of the world branded as Masaku 7s photos. Are they out already?