Kenya Simbas assistant coach Carlos Katywa believes their triumph over Uganda Cranes in the 2024 Elgon Cup has set the tone for their preparations for the 2025 Rugby Africa Cup slated for Uganda.
The Simbas edged past their East African rivals with a 48-30 aggregate victory, lifting their 11th Elgon Cup title.
In the first leg played at the RFUEA grounds, they clinched a narrow 27-25 victory before going on to dominate 21-5 in the second leg at Kings Park Stadium in Uganda.
Katywa emphasised the importance of maintaining consistency and continuity, urging the Simbas to adopt a fiery approach as they build up for next year’s continental showdown.
“We have a broad pool of players, but we’re focusing on continuity and consistency. It’s important for us that we come out guns blazing,” Katywa said.
Simbas will be aiming for a rebound from this year’s Rugby Africa Cup, where they placed fourth after a 12-20 semi-final loss to Algeria.
Zimbabwe claimed the title with a dominant 29-3 victory over Algeria in the final.
Katywa ruled out major squad overhauls, instead prioritising high-level friendlies and specialised training camps to sharpen the team.
“We have invested heavily in this group. Bringing in new players now would require months of adjustment. Our focus is on fine-tuning the team with friendlies and camps,” he said.
Reflecting on their Elgon Cup success, Katywa highlighted tactical adjustments as the key to unlocking Uganda’s defensive patterns.
“Coming into the game, we knew they would play the same game and try to contain us in our line outs and scrums so we looked for different areas to attack and I think it worked very well in the first half,” he said.
The Simbas opened the scoring through Ephraim Oduor, who powered over the line after a relentless pick-and-drive sequence.
Timothy Omela’s conversion made it 7-0.
Vice-captain Eugene Sifuna then added a second try with Omela’s reliable boot stretching the lead further.
The Simbas continued their dominance with a third converted try before halftime, establishing a commanding 21-0 lead.
Although Uganda managed a consolation try late in the game, it was too little, too late.
Katywa acknowledged that while the Simbas showcased moments of brilliance, there were lapses in decision-making that could have cost them.
“However, there were a lot of unforced errors from our side. We could have closed the game in the first half but our decision-making was lacking,” he said.
“It’s quite early for us in the
season so some of our boys
were still in the off-season and
pre-season mood. It’s not an excuse but there was
a lot of comedy of errors during the
match,” he said.
