RUGBY AFRICA CUP

Kenya thrash Mauritius as Zimbabwe, South Africa, UG start strong in Africa Men’s 7s

By Amanga collins

Posted on June 29, 2024

Dennis Abukuse in action for Kenya Morans. PHOTO/Rugby Afrique

Kenya Morans, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, and Uganda had an impressive start in the Africa Men’s 7s opener at Mauritius Labourdonnais Stadium in Port-Louis on Saturday.

Edmund Anya and Benson Salem each scored a brace as Kenya whipped hosts Mauritius 40-0.

Kenya Morans represent

With Shujaa preparing for the Paris Olympics, it was the Morans who were picked to represent Kenya. Heading into this tournament, the Morans were keen to defend the title won by Shujaa in Harare last year.

Brian Mutua and Benson Salem pose with the #AfricaMens7s trophies. #RugbyKe #Rugby #Kenya7s pic.twitter.com/Fv7YWHVagm

— Scrummage Africa (@Scrummageafrica) June 29, 2024

The Morans quickly turned defense into attack when they gained possession. The ball was shifted to the right from penalty, finding the returning Edmund Anya, who beat his markers on the right wing and raced on for an unconverted try, giving Kenya a 5-0 lead.

Dennis Abukuse doubled the lead for Kenya by breaking on the left side, which had acres of space. He raced on to land a try, extending Kenya’s lead to 12-0 after conversion.

A quick tap off a penalty saw captain Benson Salem race for the third try, giving Kenya a 19-0 lead against the hosts.

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In the second half, Elvis Olukusi grabbed a centre post try. Anya then produced a clean pair of heels to score his second try for Kenya, which was converted, pushing Kenya into the 30s.

Salem also bagged a brace, benefiting from an offload to score a centre post try, sealing a massive win.

Uganda came back from behind to secure a 22-17 victory over Ivory Coast in their opener. Uganda struggled to hold onto possession in the first half, allowing Ivory Coast captain Issa Masono to score twice, cancelling out Ian Munyani’s try at the right corner.

In the second half, Uganda emerged stronger, scoring through Dennis Etwau on the left corner. A try by Timothy Kisiga followed after he beat his markers for a centre post try, which was converted to extend Uganda’s lead.

A quick tap by Uganda’s Philip Wokorach saw him race on to score at the right corner, giving Uganda a 22-10 lead. Ivory Coast pulled back for a converted try, but that was the last action of the pool B match.

Africa Men’s 7s captains ahead of the 2023 event. Photo/Rugby Africa

Madagascar secured a 34-14 win over Nigeria in another pool A match. Gabriel Etim scored the opener for Nigeria, but Madagascar responded with two successive tries to take the lead.

Despite conceding a yellow card and being reduced to six players, the Makis scored a beautiful try to take a comfortable lead into the break.

In the second half, they struck immediately after the restart for a comfortable lead. They added more tries before Nigeria pulled back for another try. The Makis scored again before the full-time whistle for a 34-14 win.

Zimbabwe thrashed Algeria 52-0 in their opener, while South Africa, also missing their first-team players due to Olympic preparations, defeated Zambia 31-7.