Shujaa go down to Great Britain at Hong Kong Sevens

Kenya Sevens' dreams of making the Hong Kong quarterfinals with a game to spare were slowed down after Shujaa surrendered a 7-0 lead to lose 12-7 to Great Britain in their second Group C match played at Kai Tak Stadium on Friday morning.

Shujaa were seeking back-to-back wins to seal a Main Cup quarterfinal berth before their last pool match against France on Saturday. Kenya had made an emphatic start to their Hong Kong Sevens campaign, securing a commanding 19-0 victory over Spain in their opening match.

Patrick Odongo once again gave Shujaa the dream start after a quick tap and go off a Britain penalty caught the defense unaware with the Daystar Falcons winger sprinting to score near the posts for a 7-0 lead after Nygel Amaitsa’s conversion.

The lead was, however, short lived when a kick, chase and grab play by Great Britain caught the Kenyan defense off guard with the British scoring at the center for a 7-7 halftime tie.

In the final half, Shujaa wasted numerous chances with basic mistakes like ball handling from George Ooro and poor decision making from Dennis Abukuse costing Kenya the game.

Great Britain would score at the corner through Luke Mehson after capitalizing on Shujaa errors to narrowly win 12-7.

Kenya dropped to second in Group C standings with four points, two behind Great Britain who have qualified for the Main Cup quarterfinals with a match to spare.

Shujaa must now beat France in their final pool match on Saturday morning (5am) to ensure they make it to the last eight.

France sits bottom with two points following their 19-12 defeat to Spain who are third with three points.

A third-place finish will, however,r still guarantee Kenya a spot in the quarterfinals.