- The 2025 Perth HSBC SVNS is expected to be held between Friday, January 24 and Sunday, January 25.
- Shujaa will start their Perth HSBC SVNS campaign on Friday morning against New Zealand.
- Kenya Sevens is in Pool C alongside Fiji, New Zealand and Uruguay.
Shujaa will be aiming to post excellent performances in the upcoming 2025 Perth HSBC Sevens that is set to start on Friday, January 24 in order to move a step closer to achieving their target of finishing inside the top eight positions at the end of the season.
The team, which took part in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, is expected to play heavyweights New Zealand, Fiji and Uruguay in the three day tournament.
Shujaa currently occupies the ninth position in the 12-team standings with 11 points, eight more than the bottom-placed nation Ireland.
Eyes on Australia and Great Britain
According to Kenya Sevens head coach Kevin Wambua, the team has prepared for the three games with only one thing in mind: to achieve their objective of finishing in a position that guarantees their participation in the series next season.
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“We are happy to get a boost. Onyala is back in the squad, Tony was with us. Having Tanga back in gives us experience, more control and this will be vital for us as we continue with our goal which is to finish in the top eight.
For now we know as we play every game, we also have to keep an eye on Australia and GB (Great Britain), which are teams we are chasing at position seven and eight. And also, we have to be very careful in terms of how we play and also monitor them, because we know that is where our competition is,” he explained.
Great Britain and hosts Australia, who have both managed to accumulate 12 points since the start of the season, are ranked seventh and eighth respectively.
Therefore, a good show in Perth will help Shujaa increase their tally and perhaps leapfrog one or both of them ahead of the remaining legs of the series.
Sticking to the plan
The team, which has talented players like Patrick Odongo, Tony Omondi and Vincent Onyala, needs to finish inside the top eight position at the end of the season in order to avoid playing in the promotion/relegation play-off.
Wambua also divulged that Shujaa will not change their tactics in the eagerly awaited tournament that will be staged at the HBF Park.
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“We have had a week’s camp in Nakuru where we had time to sit down as a team and shake off the Christmas meals and get down to business which is analyzing our games in Dubai and Cape Town and also looking at what the opposition is going to bring to us.
We have sat down as a team and we have seen the process that we are using is really working and that is what we are going to stick with in Perth,” stated the ex-Kenya Lionesses tactician.
Shujaa’s fixtures and playing times
Shujaa is scheduled to play their opening fixture on Friday morning against New Zealand before battling it out with Fiji. The two matches will start at 6:00 AM and 10:59 AM East African Time (EAT) respectively.
After those matches, Shujaa will return to action on Saturday morning where they will play Uruguay in their final pool match from exactly 7:00 AM (EAT).
Wambua further disclosed that they take each game as a final since every team that is taking part in the series is strong.
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