Rugby in Kenya

• Kenya Cup - Week 13

  Posted: January 31, 2011, 1:31 pm by DataMiner

  Surprise or not, Nakuru were the team of the weekend. Did not see it, but must have been quite a display to blank Mwamba that way. The rest are still waiting for Quins to stumble and with only 3 matches left in the league, someone will have to do the other one a favor, whilst still doing the business themselves.The bottom of the table also be interesting in the last few matches so interesting

• Kenya Cup Results 29.1.11

  Posted: January 30, 2011, 3:04 am by Back2Besics

  Nakuru in bouyant win over brotherless MwambaImpala pick fortunate bonus against NondiesQuins whitewash our sad Mean MachineKCB whip Strathmore yet againNakuru 33 Mwamba 8Impala 33 Nondies 8Quins 41 Mean Machine 13KCB 38 Strathmore Leos 7

• Weekend Games

  Posted: January 28, 2011, 3:41 pm by DataMiner

  The fight for Kenya Cup continues though shaping out to be more interesting is the relegation battle. Here we go...League leaders Harlequins host Mean Machine at RFUEA grounds, Kenya Commercial Bank are at home in Ruaraka to Strathmore, Nondies cross the railway line to Impala and Mwamba go to floor of the Rift Valley to face Nakuru. Quins are on a roll and will whitewash Machine, despite

• Safari Sevens moved to November 2011

  Posted: January 27, 2011, 12:38 am by Back2Besics

  The Safari Sevens will for the first time since its inception 16 years ago shift from its traditional month of June to November this year.The Kenya Rugby Football Union (KRFU) confirmed on Thursday that this year’s championship will be held from November 18 to 20 at the Rugby Football Union of East Africa grounds.The union’s chairman, Richard Omwela, said the tournament’s sponsors, Safaricom

• Johnson responds to Hartley criticism

  Posted: January 27, 2011, 10:02 pm by guestblogger

  England head coach Martin Johnson has responded to criticism of England hooker Dylan Hartley, and believes the Northampton man will prove his worth on the pitch.Wales head coach Warren Gatland criticised Hartley earlier in the week and suggested that when the two teams meet, Hartley will be a weak link in the England side. The former Wasps coach criticised Hartley and said he was likely to

• Can Italy upset Ireland?

  Posted: January 27, 2011, 9:53 pm by guestblogger

  Italy and Ireland start the 2011 Six Nations Championship with different aims and expectations. The Azzurri, or at least their coach Mick Mallett, are not expecting to win every game, while the men in green believe a second Grand Slam in three years is achievable.Ireland start their campaign against the continental teams and will expect to face France in Dublin on 13th February as table-toppers.

• Phillips looking over his shoulder

  Posted: January 27, 2011, 7:47 pm by guestblogger

  Wales have maintained they still have full faith in Mike Phillips despite the scrum-half recently being dropped by his club side Ospreys in their Heineken Cup match against London Irish. With Dwayne Peel returning to the Welsh squad for the first time in nearly a year, the pressure will be on Phillips to produce on the pitch from the very start of next week's Six Nations. Anyone who has placed a

• Kenya Airways renews sponsorship for sevens team with Ksh 30M package

  Posted: January 27, 2011, 10:56 am by Back2Besics

  Kenya Airways has renewed its sponsorship flight with Kenya sevens rugby team for two more years.The national carrier’s move comes near the end of their two-year partnership with the team during the final leg of the IRB World Sevens Series in Scotland in May.The deal with Kenya Rugby Union (KRU) is worth Sh30 million.KQ chief executive officer Titus Naikuni affirmed his airline’s commitment to

• England need to push on under Johnson

  Posted: January 26, 2011, 7:10 pm by guestblogger

  Three years into the job and Martin Johnson will need to prove England have gone forward under his leadership. 2011 will be the perfect chance for Johnson's side to show exactly where they stand in world rugby, firstly in the Six Nations before the World Cup later on in the year. At the end of the year Johnson won't be able to talk about his transitional side still gelling together, those excuses

• Weekly Ramble

  Posted: January 26, 2011, 12:50 pm by DataMiner

  Missed one last week, due to unavoidable circumstances. Or maybe lack of thoughts in my head. So today I try and air my thoughts. A new team has been named to take part in the next two legs of the HSBC IRB Sevens Rugby Circuit. Forced by circumstances, or planned all along, we are now realising the need to have a system in place. Blaming unavailability of players as I have said before is a

• Gatland turns up heat on England ahead of Six Nations clash

  Posted: January 25, 2011, 6:11 pm by guestblogger

  Wales coach Warren Gatland has begun the war of words with England ahead of their opening Six Nations clash in Cardiff on February 4th.The game is vital to forging the direction of their respective Six Nations campaigns and whether intentional or not Gatland – who deliberately kept quiet about the opposition last year - struckthe first psychological blow by highlighting what he sees as England's

• Kenya Cup - Week 12

  Posted: January 25, 2011, 12:04 pm by DataMiner

  Well, Mwamba ran out of steam, the rest just cruised, and amazingly, a second draw in as many games between the same teams! Sets the stage for a furious relegation battle and maybe, just maybe one of these will decide the destination of the Kenya Cup itself. The table remains unchanged for this week.Do have a great week.

• Kenya Cup Results - 220111

  Posted: January 22, 2011, 10:58 pm by ruggerbug

  Quins 38 Mwamba 11 Machine 16 Nakuru 16 Impala 29 Strathmore 10 KCB 34Nondies 22

• Weekend Games

  Posted: January 21, 2011, 3:06 pm by DataMiner

  A bit late but here we go. Top billing is Harlequins vs. Mwamba at RFUEA grounds, Kenya Commercial Bank vs. Nondescripts in Ruaraka, Impala vs. Strathmore at Impala and Nakuru RFC vs. Mean Machine in Nakuru.The cracker on Ngong' Road will be evenly matched throughout. The fitter forwards will carry the day in that battle and I'd give Mwamba. The backs will also be a fierce battle that I expect

• Robinson names Scotland squad

  Posted: January 20, 2011, 5:33 pm by guestblogger

  Andy Robinson has named his 32-man squad that will take part in a three day training camp at St Andrews before next month's Six Nations. The head coach has picked three uncapped players in the squad, the trio have been promoted from Scotland's A side that beat the USA in November. The three are 23 year old Bath back Jack Cuthbert, 24 year old prop Jon Welsh and 20 year old loose forward Robert

• IRB 7's Las Vegas : Kenya in tough pool with New Zealand All Blacks and World 7's champions Wales

  Posted: January 20, 2011, 12:27 pm by Back2Besics

  Another battle awaits Kenya 7's in Las Vegas with the release of the pools by the organisers.Pool A: England, Argentina, France, GuyanaPool B: New Zealand, Wales, Kenya, UruguayPool C: Fiji, Australia, Scotland, CanadaPool D: Samoa, South Africa, USA, JapanGood luck Kenya Go Kenya Go

• Johnson deals with another injury blow

  Posted: January 19, 2011, 8:05 pm by guestblogger

  England head coach Martin Johnson has been dealt another major injury blow to his squad, with the news that captain Lewis Moody looks set to miss out on his side's first three matches in next month's Six Nations with a knee injury. The flanker suffered the knee ligament injury after an hour of Bath's 55-16 Heineken Cup win over Aironi and tests have revealed the full extent of the injury. Anyone

• Williams not afraid to do it his way

  Posted: January 18, 2011, 6:10 pm by guestblogger

  New Zealand Centre Sonny Bill Williams has insisted he will make his own mind up over his career goals after media speculation regarding his future in rugby union.Williams caught the attention of the public after a string of excellent performances in New Zealand’s tour of the Northern Hemisphere, but the exciting Canterbury Crusaders centre has raised doubt over his future after perusing a career

• Kenya Name Tough Squad for Wellington

  Posted: January 18, 2011, 2:52 pm by ruggerbug

  Kenya have named a stronger squad to tackle the third leg of the HSBC World Sevens Circuit in Wellington in slightly over ten days time. The perennial problem of unavailability has reared its head but the squad is much stronger than the one that took part in the first two legs.The Squad comprises1. Humphrey Kayange (Mwamba RFC- Captain)2. Sidney Ashioya ( Kenya Harlequin FC)3. Colins Injera (

• IRB 7's: Kenya 7's hopes to bounce back and collect points as Kayange speaks

  Posted: January 18, 2011, 2:42 am by Back2Besics

  With three weeks to go before the third leg of the International Rugby Board (IRB) Seven circuit resumes in New Zealand next month, Kenya's captain Humphrey Khayange is upbeat the underdog team will put in a show worth putting the African side in the main cup.The East African nation registered a poor performance in the first two legs in Dubai and George (South Africa), to what the captain

• Can France keep their focus?

  Posted: January 17, 2011, 4:10 pm by Thomas Rooney

  Ask a neutral which tie he'd most like to see in the World Cup and there's a good chance the answer will be France versus New Zealand. France, unpredictable and inconsistently exciting, against the team by whose standards all others are measured. This year there is no danger of the two not meeting - they've been drawn together in Pool A. They could meet again in the final, as happened with

• Kenya Cup - Week 11

  Posted: January 17, 2011, 2:22 pm by DataMiner

  Gets more interesting as we go along. Mwamba proving to be a formidable force in the longer code, Impala keeping the heat on Quins, and is this the beginning of a spectacular collapse by Quins? The league table remains unchanged at the top but Nakuru takes control of the middle order. Will they be the dark horse to decide the destination of the league cup? Are the death knells sounding for

• Kenya Cup Results 15.1.11

  Posted: January 15, 2011, 1:36 am by Back2Besics

  KCB edge Mwamba in ten try thriller with last gasp penaltyQuins survive Nondies scare but no bonus in ninth winImpala waltz past Mean MachineNakuru record second win with victory over sorry StrathmoreKCB 32 Mwamba 29Quins 18 Nondies 10Impala 49 Mean Machine 13Nakuru 29 Strathmore Leos 10

• Weekend Games

  Posted: January 14, 2011, 12:10 pm by DataMiner

  Kenya Cup rugby action continues in this last leg of the league. Fast rising Mwamba will host Kenya Commercial Bank, Impala travel to the UON grounds to face fast fading Mean Machine, Kenya Harlequins are away to perennial rivals Nondescripts at Jamhuri Park and Strathmore will are at home against Nakuru.The form book seeming to be out of the window, all eyes will be on the Mwamba/KCB match to

• Nile Special Uganda Premier Rubgy Union League Set for Kickoff

  Posted: January 14, 2011, 4:04 am by Back2Besics

  The 2011 Nile Special Premier Rugby Union League kicks off this weekend at 4 different venues in Kampala and Jinja.Last season MTN Heathens were run away leaders of the league with only one loss, G4S Pirates came second with UTL Kobs a close third. Entebbe Mongers, Rhinos, Impis, Nile and Buffaloes completed the rest of the table in that order.In the Nile Special Press conference for the 2011

• Murphy Injury concern for Ireland

  Posted: January 13, 2011, 6:34 pm by Thomas Rooney

  Irish Full back Geordan Murphy looks set to miss the start of Ireland’s Six Nation campaign after being ruled out for a month with an ankle injury. The Leicester man picked up the injury playing for the Tigers against Northampton on Saturday – and now looks likely to miss Ireland’s opening fixture of the tournament against Italy. Fears Murphy has ligament damage could be confirmed after further

• KRFU needs new strategy for game

  Posted: January 12, 2011, 6:52 pm by The Real KRFU

  In 8 weeks time the KRFU will have either retained or elected a newChairman in place of Richard Omwela. After that the game's status quowill remain the same with nothing really radical in the way the gameof Kenya Rugby is run.The game has outgrown the current structures is not in doubt. Even thesports editorial in todays Standard has highlighted some aspects ofit.KRFU needs to take the bold step

• Injuries hit the Scotland camp

  Posted: January 12, 2011, 5:54 pm by Thomas Rooney

  Scotland's preparations for next month's Six Nations have been handed a blow, with the news that centre Graeme Morrison could miss the whole tournament with a knee injury. The 28-year-old suffered a knee ligament injury playing for Glasgow against Edinburgh just after Christmas and is facing an eight week lay-off.With Scotland's opening match in the tournament coming on February 5th and their

• Weekly Ramble

  Posted: January 12, 2011, 2:31 pm by DataMiner

  For want of anything to write, and not to repeat myself, read my Weekly Ramble of close to 2 years ago. Most of the African rugby sports writers are now itching over this and most of what I get on the wires are the plan to split CAR or is it Africa into two. Well I said it then and nothing happened, and now we weep. We are doomed as a continent. And with this as a World Cup year, it has

• Johnson set to name Six Nations squad

  Posted: January 11, 2011, 8:55 pm by Thomas Rooney

  With the big kick-off less than a month away Martin Johnson is primed to name his England squad for the Six Nations.A number of names are in contention for the competition, which starts with a clash with Wales in Cardiff on February 4th and fans will be eagerly watching the live match score, hoping they can get off to a good start. England haven't won the Six nations since 2003, when the side

• Kenya Cup - Week 10

  Posted: January 10, 2011, 2:20 pm by DataMiner

  Surprises, or maybe not. I missed one call but close on the rest. The Kenya Cup is now not open for winners, but for spoilers and that is who people will be rooting for in the next six weeks or so. My concern now is the relegation battle, and whether it really is a battle. Some teams seem totally hapless, but that's just my view.Quins have now opened an 11-point lead at the top and the fight

• Kenya Cup Results 8.1.11

  Posted: January 8, 2011, 1:00 am by Back2Besics

  Mwamba in clinical win over ImpalaNakuru record first win with victory over NondiesQuins continue with win over Strathmore LeosKCB in another massive win Mean MachineMwamba 31 Impala 24Nakuru 18 Nondies 22Quins 42 Strathmore Leos 7KCB 60 Mean Machine 24

• Trouble in Paradise ? Quins lose second coach

  Posted: January 8, 2011, 9:08 pm by Back2Besics

  Kenya Harlequins RFC have been seriously jolted by the sudden andshock resignation of assistant coach Charles Cardovillis. This movecame as a bolt from the blue when Quins have had a flawless first legof the Kenya Cup season.The young coach who narrowly missed out as sevens coach of the yearbecomes the second to leave the stable after rookie coach SidneyObonyo headed to Mean Machine. Quins were

• Weekend Games

  Posted: January 7, 2011, 12:31 pm by DataMiner

  And a Happy New Year to you all. The league is not giving us much time to get into stride but here goes.League leaders Harlequins are away to Strathmore, Mean Machine are at home to KCB, Mwamba host Impala and Nakuru travel to play Nondies. First round form notwithstanding, the long break will be more of a factor methinks. What with festive season traveling and all, I'm sure most clubs have

• Kenya Rugby : Breaking News - KCB fire Tank Otieno

  Posted: January 6, 2011, 4:11 am by Back2Besics

  KCB Rugby Club have sensationally fired coach Michael 'Tank' Otieno. The club confirmed parting ways with him and replaced him interimly with Howard Okwemba and Derrick Wamalwa. This could not have happened at a worse time for the celebrated former Kenya 15's fullback who was also quietly but ruthlessly dismissed by the KRU from his national 15's head coach post. The coach who was on a Ksh

• Kenya Rugby : Australian side Warringah Rats set for maiden Kenyan Tour

  Posted: January 5, 2011, 12:03 pm by Back2Besics

  Australian side Waringah Rats will play their first game after arrival in Kenya on 6th February 2011 against Chairman’s select at the RFUEA grounds. Their second game will pit them against Kenya A the following Saturday 12th February 2011 again at the RFUEA Grounds. The Warringah Rats have in their ranks players with Super Rugby experience as well as some exciting youngsters. Doubtful that they

• Musical Chairs At CAR Threatens Rugby Development

  Posted: January 3, 2011, 8:52 pm by Back2Besics

  An informatife piece by Eric Odanga aka PunterCracks which have been widening over the years among the executive of the Africa Rugby Confederation and some member countries continued to widen as the International Rugby Board adopted a hands off stance.The contents of the CAR Constitution has been singularly changed severally to favor the incumbent. No amount of reasoning seems to have succeeded

• Rugby Ends 2010 In Style As All Stars Win Hemingway Safari 7s Tournament

  Posted: January 3, 2011, 7:16 pm by Back2Besics

  Happy New 2011. Nigerian rugby ended the year with a big bang with a successful inaugural Hemingway Safari 7's rugby tournament held on Tuesday and Wednesday December 21st and 22nd.The Nigerian All Stars elite rugby squad beat Barewa RFC by 21 points to 0 points to win the cup tournament, while in a closely fought Plate final Racing RFC of Lagos beat Shell Warri RFC by 19 points to 12 points to

• Kenya Rugby 2010 - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

  Posted: January 1, 2011, 5:25 pm by The Real KRFU

  Happy New Year to all Kenya Rugby.2010 was a unique year and outstandingly rugby survived another year.The GoodKRFU managed to change the season in line with the international calendar.The expansion of the Eric Shirley Shield and Universities League wasgood for the game especially in West KenyaThe Bamburi Series borne a totally new West Kenya franchise BuffalosHomeboyz emerged as a fresh breath

Blah blah blah

Fish cakes

Alas a fish cake.

Yet more fish cakes

Guess what ... yeah ... fish cakes.

The end of the fish cakes