•Arunga suffered a level two-grade hamstring injury during the Prinsloo Sevens last weekend in Nakuru.
•Weru, however, rued the semifinal performance where they lost to Quins 14-10 in a shock upset
Image: HANDOUT
Menengai Oilers will be without Steve Arunga for the Christie Sevens tournament this weekend.
Arunga suffered a level two-grade hamstring injury during the Prinsloo Sevens last weekend in Nakuru.
Speaking Thursday, head coach Gibson Weru said he hopes Arunga will have recovered for the final two tournaments —the Tisap Sevens in Eldoret and Kabeberi Sevens next month.
“Arunga is out of the tournament for this weekend with the hamstring injury but everyone else is fit and raring to go," he noted.
Weru's charges are in Pool 'D' and face Mwamba, Nondies, and the just promoted Sigalagala, who won the Division Two category last week in Nakuru. The former playmaker termed the pool as tricky.
“It's a tricky pool and therefore, our mantra is one game at a time as we see where we end up after Day One of the competition
He added: "Nondies and my team have had some very competitive matches. Mwamba are a tough team to beat and Sigalagala will always want to prove a point now that they are in the top tier."
The tactician was hopeful that the side can retain their crown despite being 17 points adrift of log leaders Kabras.
“I'm confident we can go all the way in this group. We have reached the final in the Driftwood Sevens and played in the semi at Prinsloo Sevens. So, it's a matter of tweaking our tactics and we hope this weekend we can win the Christie Sevens," observed Weru.
He added: “ We have three tournaments to go and we are still in contention but now we are praying the teams above—Kabras and KCB— falter and we pick maximum points. The nature of Sevens is very unpredictable and I hope we can bounce back and win a tournament," he added.
Weru, however, rued the semifinal performance, where they lost to Quins 14-10 in a shocking upset.
“In the big moments in the match, we did not execute well so it was a winnable game for us. I hope they have learned the lessons as we go to Christie Sevens," he noted.
Standings after three tournaments: Kabras 63, KCB 56, Oilers 46, Quins 46, Strathmore 44, Mwamba 39, Homeboyz 28, Nakuru 27, Nondies 23 and Kisumu 20.