KENYA Lionesses start their quest for qualification to the World Seven Series this weekend with the opening tournament at the Athlone Stadium in Cape Town.
Last season, Dennis Mwanja’s charges missed out on the top four final shoot-out in Madrid after finishing fifth and the coach admitted they have learnt their lessons from the event.
The Lionesses had an intense three-month training phase coupled with playing build-up matches against Poland at the RFUEA Ground last month.
The team arrived in Cape Town on Tuesday and has acclimatised to the hot and sunny conditions in the mother city.
The Lionesses open their campaign against Samoa on Saturday at 12:38 PM and Mwanja expects a competitive contest from the Pacific Islanders.
“They are a very physical side. We have done our video analysis on them and there are areas we know we can capitalise on to enable us to win the match,” added Mwanja.
The Lionesses will then face Poland at 7:30 PM in their second match.
The two sides have met twice in the last 12 months with Poland beating the Lionesses 21-10 in Krakow in the final Challenger Seven Series last year and Mwanja’s charges exacting revenge during the friendly build-up last month, which they won 19-12 at the RFUEA ground.
The tactician said he also expects a competitive contest against the European side.
“We know each other very well and from the match we played recently, there are areas which I believe we can exploit and get a victory,” he added.
Mwanja said the team needed to start the tournament well.
“There is no margin for error. It’s vital we accumulate as many points as possible this weekend to give us a good foundation for the remainder of the series,” he said.
Mwanja lauded the partnership the side has with MPESA, observing it will go a long way in benefitting the team.
“We are delighted with the sponsorship deal with Safaricom. It will help the players’ welfare and I believe the players can now concentrate on the task at hand to qualify for the World Series,” noted Mwanja.
The second leg of the Challenger Seven Series will be held at the same venue on March 7-8.
Following the second leg, the top-ranked eight men’s and women’s teams will progress to the third and final tournament at the Henryk Reyman’s Municipal Stadium in Krakow on April 11–12.
The four men’s and women’s teams with the most cumulative points gained across the three Challenger rounds will then qualify for the HSBC Sevens Play-Off in Los Angeles on May 3-4.
