Former Kenya U20 captain Michael Wamalwa has landed a professional deal with Romanian top division club CSM Știința Baia Mare.
Wamalwa who captained Kenya U20 in 2023 and went on to win the Barthes Cup with the side in 2024. He becomes the first Kenyan to join the club
Michael Wamalwa unveiled
“Welcome, Michael Wamalwa! CSM Știința Baia Mare warmly welcomes Michael Wamalwa, the first Kenyan-born player in the club’s history! Michael joins us from Kenya Commercial Bank RFC, one of the most successful and prestigious clubs in Kenya, competing in the Kenya Cup — the country’s top division,” the club announced.
“The club is renowned for its high level of professionalism and has a rich history of producing players for Kenya’s national teams, both in 15s and 7s rugby. At KCB, the newest “Zimbri” (Bison) signing played in a competitive environment and stood out as a leader, which earned him a call-up and the captain’s armband for Kenya’s U20 national team,” the club stated.
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“Captain of the Kenya U20 national team at the 2023 World Rugby U20 Trophy held in Nairobi, where he led the team to a 5th-place finish. A year later, still with the U20 squad, Mike helped secure victory at the “Battles Trophy” held in Zimbabwe. Thanks to that success, the Kenya U20 team qualified for the World Cup scheduled to take place a few months later in Scotland.
“By the age of 20, Mike had already emerged as a highly promising player with two World Cup appearances under his belt. We wish him the best of luck in our team colours!”
He joins Malcolm Onsando, Melvin Thairu, Ian Njenga and Cornelius Mokoro on the list of Kenyans in Romania.
His new club is a Romanian professional rugby union club based in Baia Mare that competes in the Liga de Rugby Kaufland, Romania’s top division of rugby.
They are nine times champions with their most recent coming in a four-peat between 2019-2022.
