Kenya 7s picked a 26-14 defeat against Ireland in a Hong Kong 7s pool D match played on Saturday.
In a crucial match for both teams to boost their chances of reaching the quarterfinals, Kenya and Ireland faced off, with Kenya hoping to end their five-match losing streak to Ireland, their last victory coming in Dubai in 2021.
Kenya 7s concede early on
Unfortunately for Kenya 7s, they conceded a try just 15 seconds into the game as the Shujaa players failed to field a tap from kick off, allowing Harry McNulty to collect the ball and race to score an easy try that was converted. However, Kenya responded four minutes later, scoring a try through Alvin Otieno off a penalty to tie the score at 7-7.
Despite Kenya’s efforts in defense, Ireland managed to take the lead just before halftime when Andrew Smith scored a try, making it 14-7 to Ireland.
In the second half, Ireland extended their lead with a well-executed move that resulted in a try for Mark Roche, bringing the score to 21-7.
But Kenya fought back with a fantastic play, as Kevin Wekesa offloaded the ball to Johnstone Olindi who then released it to Billy Odhiambo for a try, narrowing the gap to 21-14.
However, Kenya lost possession of the ball and conceded several penalties, allowing Roche to score again and secure the win for Ireland.
Kenya 7s ranked bottom
With this result, New Zealand lead the Pool with six points, followed by South Africa and Ireland who are tied on four points, while Kenya 7s have two points.
Kenya will face South Africa in their final match at 10:25 AM, while Ireland will take on New Zealand.
Hong Kong 7s
Matches
Friday 31 March
New Zealand 29-5 Kenya 7s
Ireland 7-14 South Africa
Fiji 12-7 Samoa
Argentina 17-7 Canada
USA 0-7 Spain
Australia 26-5 Japan
Great Britain 14-12 Uruguay
France 21-14 Hong Kong
Matches
Saturday 01 April
New Zealand 12-7 South Africa
Ireland 26-14 Kenya 7s
Fiji vs Canada : 06:52
Argentina vs Samoa : 07:16
USA vs Japan: 07:40
Australia vs Spain : 08:04
Great Britain vs Hong Kong : 08:28
France vs Uruguay : 08:52
Kenya 7s vs South Africa : 10:25
Ireland vs New Zealand : 10:49
Samoa vs Canada: 11:13
Argentina vs Fiji : 11:37
Spain vs Japan : 12:01
Australia vs USA: 12:25
Uruguay vs Hong Kong: 12:49
France vs Great Britain : 13:13
Sunday 02 April
9TH PLACE QUARTER FINAL
3rd Pool D vs 4th Pool A : 03:30
3rd Pool B vs 4th Pool C : 03:53
3rd Pool A vs 4th Pool D : 04:16
3rd Pool C vs 4th Pool B : 04:39
CUP QUARTER FINALS
1st Pool D vs 2nd Pool A : 05:02
1st Pool B vs 2nd Pool C : 05:25
1st Pool A vs 2nd Pool D: 05:48
1st Pool C vs 2nd Pool B : 06:11
13TH PLACE SEMI FINAL
Loser M25 vs Loser M26- KO: 06:39
Loser M27 vs Loser M28 : 07:02
9TH PLACE SEMI FINAL
Winner M26 vs Winner M25 : 07:25
Winner M27 vs Winner M28 : 07:48
5TH PLACE SEMI FINAL
Loser M29 vs Loser M30 : 08:57
Loser M31 vs Loser M32 : 09:20
CUP SEMI FINALS
Winner M30 vs Winner M29 : 10:29
Winner M31 vs Winner M32 : 10:52
13TH PLACE PLAY-OFF
Winner M33 vs Winner M34: 11:15
9TH PLACE PLAY-OFF
Winner M36 vs Winner M35: 12:05
5TH PLACE PLAY-OFF
Winner M37 vs Winner M38 : 12:55
BRONZE FINAL
Loser M40 vs Loser M39 : 14:10
CUP FINAL
Winner M40 vs Winner M39 : 15:15
