Kenya Simbas head coach Jerome Paarwater has opened up on the thinking behind the final 33-man squad selection for the upcoming training camp in South Africa, following a 54-24 victory over the UAE in a training match at the RFUEA Grounds on Saturday.
The match marked the conclusion of a one-week local training program held in Kakamega from May 12 to 18. Paarwater said the fixture offered a critical platform to assess all 47 players who had been in camp, especially those returning to the national setup.
“The training match offered us an opportunity to see the work that we’ve done over the last one week in Kakamega come to life, especially for the players who haven’t been in the Simbas set up for the last two years,” Paarwater said.
Paarwater acknowledged the challenge the technical bench faced in making the final cut.
“As mentioned it was a tough selection for us to trim the squad from 53 to 33, as all the players really showed up, we have picked what we believe is the best in the country at the moment and are looking forward to the challenge in SA,” Paarwater added
The selected squad features a blend of experience and youth, led by captain George Nyambua. New faces such as Samuel Ovwamu and Collins Indeche make the cut, while 2023 World Cup qualifiers John Okoth, Samuel Asati, and Bethwel Anami return to the fold.
He emphasized that simulating a match environment was crucial for making informed decisions.
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“It was important for us, to see all 47 players who have been in camp, play in a game situation, which is not always possible in a training set up. We went through the game as a technical bench, it wasn’t easy, the first two sets had a lot of opportunities, but couldn’t convert them as well as the last set did, some of these things come with experience.”
Paarwater also spoke on the upcoming Rugby Africa Cup in Uganda, which doubles as a 2027 Rugby World Cup Qualifier, reiterating the need for solid preparation.
“We’ve been following the rest of the teams in the Rugby Africa Cup, but we’ll keep focusing on ourselves, we will be playing some experienced sides from Western Province such as SWD Eagles etc, the Blue Bulls and Sanlam Boland Cavaliers, so by the time we are back, we will be ready for the challenge.”
