Kenya 7s reclaim Africa Men’s 7s crown after thrilling win over Madagascar

• Kenya Morans reclaimed the Africa Men’s 7s crown after beating Madagascar 15-12 in the 2026 Mauritius 7s final.
• The triumph marked Kenya 7s’ record-extending seventh title, reclaiming the crown they last won in 2023.
• Morans booked their slot in the final after stunning South Africa 15-0 in the semifinals.

Kenya 7s staged a remarkable outing to reclaim the Africa Men’s 7s title for a record-extending seventh time, after narrowly beating the latest hard-to-beat Madagascar 15-12 in the 2026 Mauritius 7s final played on Sunday at the SPARC International Rugby Stadium in Cascavelle.

Kenya Morans booked their place in the final after stunning top rivals South Africa 15-0 in the semifinals, bouncing back from a second-place finish in the group stage.

And in the final, Morans needed nothing short of a response against a punishing Makis side that had beaten them 26-0 on Saturday in the group stage for the fourth time.

They needed to avoid an embarrassing fifth defeat, and they delivered with an incredible performance that saw Menengai Oilers star Glacious Owino slot a late penalty between the posts to ensure they reclaimed the title they last won in 2023.

ALSO READ: Kenya 7s fall to Madagascar again, set up tough Africa Men’s 7s semifinal clash with South Africa

Makis were the first side to draw blood in an intense encounter when they found an opening on the wing, with John Mark managing to ground the ball for five unconverted points.

This came just a minute after Victor Mola was bundled into touch only a few centimetres from the try line as Makis took the lead.

But that lead was short-lived as Morans responded with a try of their own.

Rayvon Ambale seized a good offload from KCB’s Elvis Olukusi to snatch the ball, sprinted between the wide defence and raced into space before grounding it. He then added the extras as Kenya went into the break with a two-point advantage.

Just after the restart, Kevin Wambua’s men hit the ground running with a well-worked move down the left wing.

After a slick exchange of passes, Dennis Ndalaya was tackled just metres from the line but managed to offload to Gabriel Ayimba, who has been sensational throughout the tournament, to dot down an unconverted try.

Makis, however, were not ready to surrender. The Morans’ defence switched off moments later, allowing them to find a gap between the posts, where their speedster Jean Yves Randriamalal finished clinically to level the game after the successful conversion.

However, Kenya remained composed in the closing stages, pinning Madagascar inside their 22.

They eventually created an opening and opted to go for the posts, with Owino calmly converting the three-pointer to seal Kenya’s 2026 title triumph.

Having missed out in the final for the last two editions, Kenya Morans have managed to reclaim the title they had last won in 2023, a motivation heading into next weekend’s Safari 7s as well as the HSBC SVNS 2 preparations.

• 8:44am EAT – Kenya 34-12 Namibia
• 11:50am EAT – Kenya 19-0 Réunion
• 2:40pm EAT – Kenya 0-26 Madagascar

Sunday Results

• 9:44am EAT – Kenya 15-0 South Africa – Cup Semifinal
• 2:11pm EAT – Kenya 15-12 Madagascar – Cup Final