Kenya Lionesses head coach Simon Odongo is confident his charges are better equipped to challenge for continental honours as the 2026 Rugby Africa Women's Sevens tournament gets underway at the RFUEA Grounds this weekend.
The two-day tournament, scheduled for November 7-8, will see the Lionesses chasing an improved finish after settling for silver at last year's championship, where they fell to South Africa in the final.
Lionesses have been drawn in Pool B alongside Tunisia and Ghana, while Pool A features South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Rwanda. Pool C comprises Uganda, Madagascar, Mauritius and Burkina Faso. The Lionesses will start their campaign against Ghana on Saturday afternoon before winding up their pool assignments against Tunisia.
At the 2025 edition, also staged at the RFUEA Grounds in Nairobi, Kenya, the Lionesses produced an impressive campaign to finish runners-up behind South Africa.
The Lionesses negotiated the pool stages successfully before stamping their authority in the knockout rounds, dispatching Zimbabwe 33-12 in the quarter-finals and grinding out a thrilling 17-10 victory over regional rivals Uganda Lady Cranes in the semi-finals.
However, their spirited title charge ended in the final, where South Africa proved too strong, handing Kenya a 22-0 defeat to claim the crown.
Odongo believes his side has made significant strides since last year's campaign, particularly in developing the versatility required to compete against the continent's best.
"One area we really struggled with last season was versatility of players, not being able to play in different positions," Odongo said.
The Lionesses head into the continental assignment riding high after successfully defending their Safari Sevens crown last month, a performance that offered the technical bench further encouragement ahead of the weekend showdown.
"Safari Sevens was a good event for us. We played players out of position, and they responded well under pressure," Odongo said.
At the 2026 Safari Sevens, staged at Nyayo National Stadium, the Lionesses were in imperious form, going unbeaten in a competitive round-robin contest that featured Tunisia, South Africa's Tuks Women and regional rivals Uganda.
Kenya underlined their attacking prowess with a commanding 43-0 demolition of Tuks Women before surviving a stern examination from Tunisia, edging the North Africans 19-17 to maintain their unbeaten run.
They saved their best for the decisive encounter against Uganda Lady Cranes, to register a convincing 22-5 victory and retain the Safari Sevens title.
With that momentum behind them, Odongo says preparations for the continental showpiece have been progressing well, expressing confidence that the team is in a stronger position than it was at a similar stage last season.
"In terms of preparations, we are much further ahead than we were at this stage last season," he said.
