Kenya Simbas head coach Jerome Paawater believes their high-performance training camp in South Africa is designed to instil a winning mentality and expose the team to world-class facilities ahead of the 2027 Rugby World Cup Africa qualifying tournament.
The qualifiers, which will double as the Africa Cup, are scheduled for July 20 to 28 in Kampala, Uganda.
A squad of 33 players has been in camp in Cape Town since May 28 and played their first training match on Saturday against Hamilton Rugby Football Club, the oldest rugby club in South Africa.
The team is set to face the South Western Districts (SWD) Eagles on June 3 in George, followed by two matches against the South Africa Under-20 team on June 9 and June 14 in Stellenbosch.
The Junior Boks are preparing for the 2025 World Rugby Under-20 Championship, which runs from June 29 to July 19 in Viadana, Calvisano, Verona, and Rovigo, Italy.
The Simbas, who are sponsored by Kenya Airways, will later relocate to Wellington for a clash with the Sanlam Boland Cavaliers on June 20.
“Just being in South Africa is inspirational enough since they are the world champions, and there is no better place to be and train for the boys than here.
The facilities here are good too, and the training matches will bring out the best from the boys. They will play some of the best teams in Currie Cup sides,” said Paawater, who wants his team to adopt a running style of play.
“As witnessed during the friendly with the United Arab Emirates, the team was good in set pieces and open play, and that is what we will continue to improve on,” he explained.
Paawater, who last guided the Simbas during the 2015 Rugby World Cup qualifiers, acknowledged that a lot has changed in the game since then.
“The style of play in 2014 and now are worlds apart. The rules of the game have changed, and the style of player is a bit faster compared to those days when it was slow. The players are young compared to then,” said Paawater.
Kenya has come close to qualifying for the Rugby World Cup on several occasions. In the 2015 Africa qualifiers, the Simbas stunned Namibia 29-22 and only needed a point against Zimbabwe in their final match.
However, they lost 28-20, finishing third behind Namibia and Zimbabwe—each tied on 10 points—due to inferior aggregate.
The Simbas finished second in both the 2019 and 2023 Africa qualifiers, earning spots in the Repechage, a global playoff route that is more challenging than the continental qualification pathway.
Paawater revealed that two South Africa-based players—David Bunduki and Thomas Okeyo, who play for Griffons RFC—are expected to join the squad next week.
There are no surviving members from the 2015 World Cup qualifier, but three players from the 2019 campaign—skipper George Nyambua, Hillary Mwajilwa, and Samson Onsomu —are still in the squad.
Meanwhile, John Okoth, Samuel Asati, and Bethwel Anami return after featuring in the 2023 qualifiers in France. The current squad also includes exciting new talents such as Samuel Ovwamu and Collins Indeche.
