Chipu silence stubborn Uganda to storm Barthes Trophy semi-finals
Kenya Chipu right centre Mathias Osimbo (left) vies with Uganda's left wing Steven Kalema during their Rugby Africa Under-20 Barthes Trophy quarter-final match at Nyayo National Stadium in Nairobi on April 09, 2022.
What you need to know:
- The win did not come easy for the defending champions as Coach Curtis Olago's men were made to sweat for it, especially in the first half
- It was one-way traffic for Kenya in the second half as they got tries through Ganguma Idd (two), Nicholas Okulu, David Mwangi and Mathias Osimbo for the emphatic victory
- Zimbabwe and Madagascar will face off in the other semi-final also on Wednesday at Nyayo
Kenya Under-20 men's team, Chipu Saturday thumped Uganda 54-20 in the quarter-finals of Rugby Africa U-20 Barthes Trophy at Nyayo National Stadium in Nairobi on Saturday.
Kenya will now face Namibia in the semi-finals on Wednesday. The win did not come easy for the defending champions as Coach Curtis Olago's men were made to sweat for it, especially in the first half.
Kenya now join Namibia, Zimbabwe and Madagascar who had clinched the first three semi-final tickets by sweeping aside Ivory Coast 62-0, Tunisia 19-18 and Zambia 26-14 respectively in the quarters.
Chipu were first on the scoreboard through Cornelius Mukoro's penalty in the 17th minute. However, poor ball handling by the hosts near their try line saw Uganda take the lead 3-7 from Ema Ochan's converted try.
Olago's charges tried to cut the deficit through push-over tries but Uganda's defence was impenetrable using that tactic. Kenya then won a penalty in Uganda’s half which was converted by Mukoro for a 6-7 scoreline.
Felix Chacha put Kenya ahead 11-7 with an unconverted try with six minutes to half-time. However, Uganda replied with a penalty from the boots of Captain Daniel Okello to see Kenya lead 11-10 at the break.
Kenya Chipu left lock Persian Kolian charges past Uganda's Herbert Champara during their Rugby Africa Under-20 Barthes Trophy quarter-final match at Nyayo National Stadium in Nairobi on April 09, 2022.
It was one-way traffic for Kenya in the second half as they got tries through Ganguma Idd (two), Nicholas Okulu, David Mwangi and Mathias Osimbo for the emphatic victory. Okello added a late try for the Ugandan side.
Zimbabwe and Madagascar will face off in the other semi-final also on Wednesday at the same venue.
Meanwhile, Kenya Simbas lost their opening match 51-14 to hosts Valke at the Currie Cup in South Africa on Saturday. Samuel Asati and Brian Tanga scored the tries for Kenya.
“It was a good start to the campaign considering the team has only been together for a week and travelled on Thursday night to South Africa. We only had one session in South Africa. To be able to score tries and improve as the game continued is an important part of our Currie Cup campaign,” said Simbas Team Manager Jimmy Mnene.
