Kenya for Test matches against Spain, Portugal

Kenya will warm up for the Africa Rugby Cup with Test friendly match against Portugal on May 30 at the RFUEA grounds.

Kenya Rugby Union (KRU) has also lined up a Test match against Spain on July 18.

The 15s team, under South African coach Jerome Paawater, will play Spain in between the Africa Cup tournament that has adopted a new format.

Team manager Wangila Simiyu said victories against Portugal and Spain will be good for Kenya’s preparation and will boost the team’s ranking globally. Kenya are currently placed 31st in the latest World Rugby rankings while Spain are 21st and Portugal 23rd.

“Claiming their scalps will definitely improve our ranking,” said Wangila.

KRU has selected a 51-man squad for a training camp in Kasarani which begins on Friday for three days under the supervision of Paarwater, who is due in the country on Thursday.

TRAVERSE THE CONTINENT

Africa Cup that is also known as the Africa Rugby Division 1A tournament will see teams traverse the continent unlike the previous format where the the event was held in one venue.

Kenya will play Namibia, Tunisia and Zimbabwe in the Division 1A matches. The team that finishes bottom will be relegated to Division 1B next season.

After playing Portugal, Kenya will open up their campaign in the Africa Cup against Zimbabwe on June 13 in Harare before meeting Tunisia on June 30 at the RFUEA grounds.

The match against Spain will be a vital build-up for Kenya’s Africa Cup tie against champions Namibia on August 8 in Windhoek.

“The Portugal and Spain Test matches will come in handy after we missed out on Vodacom Cup this season,” said Wangila.

Namibia, who will play at the Rugby World Cup, are placed 22nd and Zimbabwe 26th in World Rugby ranking.

Wangila said it’s after the trials that they will come up with two teams: the Kenya 15s Tusker Simba and Kenya ‘A’, also known as Shujaa.

The first 30-35 players will make Tusker Simba squad with the rest forming Shujaa that will seek to defend the Elgon Cup title against Uganda in the first leg tie on June 13 at the RFUEA grounds.

“The camp will give us a chance to get the wider squad together for the international season,” Wangila said. “It will be critical for us in terms of complementing the work that the clubs have done of ensuring the players are in good shape during the league.”