Samuel Wafula of Strathmore tackles George Ooro of KCB during the Dala Sevens/HANDOUTGame management will be the main area of focus for Strathmore Leos as they prepare for next weekend’s Kabeberi Sevens, the third leg of the SportPesa National 7s Circuit.
The Madaraka-based side has endured an underwhelming start to the campaign, finishing ninth at the season-opening Prinsloo Sevens in Nakuru before improving to sixth at the Dala Sevens in Kisumu.
In Nakuru, Strathmore opened their campaign with a 19-14 defeat to Masinde Muliro before bouncing back with a commanding 36-0 victory over Kisumu. A 5-5 draw against Daystar saw them miss out on the main cup quarter-finals.
They responded by beating Embu 19-0 in the quarter-finals, overcoming Impala 22-5 in the semi-finals and defeating Oilers 14-7 to finish ninth overall.
Their fortunes improved at the Dala Sevens, where they defeated Embu 53-0 and Nakuru 33-19 before losing 33-10 to eventual champions Kabras Sugar. The results were enough to earn them a place in the main cup quarter-finals where they had a blistering start against Mwamba, leading 14-0 at some point only to lose 15-14.
This exposed an area coach Willis Ojal believes must improve.
“We led the game 14-0 and were in cruise control, but we allowed them to get back into the match. To concede that last-minute try was terrible. It was a timely reminder of the importance of game management,” said Ojal.
A similar pattern emerged in their match against Kabras.
“We started well and even led Kabras 10-0 before they found space in the second half and ran away with the game to win 33-10. Something similar happened against KCB in the classification match, where we led before they came from behind to win,” he said.
Despite these setbacks, Ojal remains confident his side can challenge for a tournament title later in the series.
“Looking ahead, Kabras will be without a couple of their star players who will be on Barthes Cup duty, while KCB will also miss players expected to feature in the Ultimate Sevens in Europe. That means the competition will be more open, and with a few tactical improvements, I believe we can win one of the remaining legs,” he said.
At the Kabeberi Sevens, Strathmore has been drawn in Pool C alongside Mwamba, Nondescripts, and Catholic Monks—a group Ojal believes will test his players.
“It is a tricky pool, but if we make the necessary tactical adjustments and manage games better, we will put ourselves in a good position to qualify for the Main Cup quarter-finals,” he said.
