The Kenya 7s made work difficult for themselves in a bid to make the main cup quarterfinals in the ongoing Hong Kong 7s after failing to get the job done on Friday in their opening two Pool C matches.
Having comfortably beaten Spain 19-0 in their opener, the Kevin Wambua-coached side had a golden chance of securing their spot in the last 8 for only the second time this season with a match to spare when they took on Great Britain but Shujaa just failed to capitalize as they succumbed to a narrow 12-7 defeat.
The result ensured that they went into the last Pool C game against France on Saturday needing nothing short of a win or favours elsewhere to book their quarterfinal ticket.
As things stand, Great Britain top Pool C on 6 points, Kenya are second on 4 points, Spain follow on 3 points with France on 2 points.
Kenya 7s stun Spain in opener
Having had a disappointing outing in Vancouver where they finished in last place, Shujaa caused a massive upset in the opening match by beating Spain 19-0 courtesy of tries from Patrick Odongo, George Ooro and Samuel Asati.
Odongo put his pace to good use for the first try after pouncing on a Spanish handling error before Ooro touched down under the posts to stretch Kenya’s lead to 12-0 following a successful conversion.
Asati’s quick thinking then led to the third try as he picked the ball off a 5m scrum before hauling himself over the tryline to seal the 19-0 win over a Spanish side that is currently in second place in the overall standings with Shujaa down in 9th spot.
Great Britain prove tough nut to crack for Kenya 7s
Shujaa were hoping to ride on the momentum from the first win over Spain and took a 7-0 lead when a switched-on Odongo made a quick restart after a Kenyan turnover before touching down.
Great Britain however hit back with two cleverly worked attempts that saw them exploit the space Kenyans had left behind them to complete a 12-7 comeback.
Kenya will now face France on Saturday at 0516EAT with everything to play for.
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