Kabras Sugar 7s players celebrate with the trophy and KES 150,000 winner’s cheque after reclaiming the Dala 7s title in Kisumu.
Twelve days ago, KCB looked unstoppable. The Bankers had swept through the Prinsloo Sevens in Nakuru without a blemish, the kind of form that made them favourites to defend their Dala 7s crown in Kisumu this past weekend.
It didn’t survive first contact with the knockout stages.
The first crack appeared in the pools, where KCB could only draw 19-19 with MMUST a side they’d have expected to beat comfortably on Nakuru form. By the quarter-finals, that crack had widened into a collapse. Kenya Harlequins delivered the shock result of the tournament, eliminating the defending champions and ending any hope of a Dala repeat before the semi-finals had even kicked off. KCB limped to a 5th-place finish, beating Strathmore 24-17 in the classification match.
Harlequins couldn’t quite ride that high all the way to a podium finish of their own. Mwamba 7s made them work for bronze in a match that ran well past its allotted time 17-17 after regulation, before Mwamba captain Shaquel Bosire settled it with a try in extra time for a 22-17 win.
While KCB’s weekend was unravelling, Kabras Sugar 7s were quietly assembling a very different story at the other end of the draw. A year removed from losing the Dala final to the very side that had just been dumped out, Kabras found themselves trailing Menengai Oilers 0-5 at halftime and responded with three unanswered tries.
Derrick Ashihundu drew Kabras level early in the second half. Series MVP Rayvon Ambale then scored and converted to edge them ahead, before Fredrick Wangila’s try, added to by Michael Lukusi’s boot, sealed a 19-5 win and returned Kabras to the top of the overall standings.
“We came too short in Nakuru, losing in the final, but we knew we had it in us to win here and we couldn’t be more pleased,” Kabras captain Mathias Osimbo said afterward.
Mwamba Ladies celebrate with the trophy and KES 100,000 winner’s cheque after retaining their Dala 7s Division One title in Kisumu.
There was better news for Mwamba on the women’s side of the draw the club’s Ladies side beat Kenya Harlequins 10-7 in the Division One final with a late try, securing back-to-back titles and KES 100,000.
Reflecting on the weekend, SportPesa Head of Public Relations Willis Ojwang pointed to the closing gap between the circuit’s traditional powers and the chasing pack. “Two legs in, the gap between the top teams and the chasing pack is closing, and that competitiveness is exactly what we want heading into Kabeberi and the rest of the circuit,” he said.
Promotion drama also played out at the Impala Club, where Catholic Monks beat Stallions 20-14 in the Division 2 final to move up to Division 1, pocketing KES 70,000 to the runners-up’s KES 30,000.
Attention now turns to Nairobi, where the Kabeberi Memorial Sevens Leg 3 of the circuit takes place at the Impala Club on 15–16 August. KCB will have some rebuilding to do before then.
