- Kenya Lionesses dismantle Uganda Lady Cranes 43-10 to kick off the Rugby Africa Women’s Cup 2026 on a high note.
- The tournament got underway on Saturday, May 23, at RFUEA Grounds.
- The Lionesses’ next match will be against Madagascar on Wednesday, May 27, at the same venue.
Kenya Lionesses 15s side, kicked off the Rugby Africa Women’s Cup 2026 on a high note after dismantling their regional rivals Uganda Lady Cranes 43-10 in the opener played on Saturday at the RFUEA Grounds in Nairobi.
Just seven minutes into the game, the Lionesses, who are eyeing their first-ever title, struck first after Janet Okello sliced through the Lady Cranes’ defence before delivering a perfect pass to Faith Livoi, who grounded the ball for the opening try. Sinaida Nyachio added the extras to hand Kenya a 7-0 lead.
Five minutes later, Uganda, who finished third last year, responded strongly after piling pressure inside Kenya’s 22. A powerful carry close to the try line saw Fazirah Namukwaya touch down, while Bashira Namutebi converted to level the scores at 7-7.
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Kenya Lionesses dismantle Uganda Lady Cranes 43-10
Kenya quickly regained control after Stellah Wafula bulldozed her way down the right wing to restore the lead at 12-7.
Two minutes later, the Lionesses extended their advantage through speedster Freshia Oduor, who sprinted to the corner for another try to make it 17-7.
Simon Odongo’s charges kept up their dominance and managed to bag another try before halftime.
Okello again sliced through the left wing, shrugged off the Lady Cranes’ defense, and instead of going for the try herself, she cleverly passed to debutant Tracey Mutugi, who scored her first try for the national team to make it 22-7.
Uganda earned a penalty, opted for the kick, and slotted three points to reduce the deficit to 22-10 before the break, setting up a potentially thrilling second half.
However, as much as it promised to be an exciting remainder of the match, it was Kenya Lionesses who controlled the encounter.
They got on the board just six minutes after the restart, taking a 29-10 lead after Nyachio converted.
Through a lineout just five minutes past the hour mark, the Lionesses continued to boss the game and added another try via a solid maul on the left wing through Naomi Muhaji, making it 36-10 after Nyachio’s conversion.
They wrapped up the rout with another well-worked try. Mokaya managed to offload to Freshia, who simply dotted the ball down to give the hosts the lead after the conversion sailed through, making it 43-10 to seal the win and assert dominance over their neighbors.
With this victory, Kenya Lionesses will now look ahead to their second match of the tournament on Wednesday, May 27, where they will face Madagascar, who suffered a heavy 64-5 defeat to defending champions South Africa.
Meanwhile, Uganda Cranes will aim to topple the four-time champions South Africa on the same day.
Rugby Africa Women’s Cup 2026 performance division fixtures &Results (May 21-31)
Saturday, 23 May
- South Africa 64-5Madagascar
- Kenya Lionesses 43-10 Uganda Lady Cranes
Wednesday, 27 May
- 14:00: South Africa v Uganda
- 16:00: Kenya Lionesses vs Madagascar
Sunday, 31 May
- 14:00: Uganda vs Madagascar
- 16:00: South Africa v Kenya