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Kenya Sevens could not manage to finish among the top 11 in France but have a final window of opportunity in London next weekend
Kenya Sevens saw their prestigious top flight status ended following their poor showing at the penultimate leg of the World Rugby Sevens Series in Toulouse, France this weekend.
However, all is not lost for Kenya even if they have been disappointing this season, as they still have a final window of opportunity at the four-team relegation play-off at the 11th and final round of the Series in London.
Shujaa have been a core team since 2004 but fell foul on the change of rules that will see 12 teams make the top flight from 16, as it has been, starting from the 2023-24 season.
That means only the top 11 at the end of the 10th leg in Toulouse were guaranteed a place in the top tier next season with the sides that finish 12th to 14th entering a relegation playoff, a round robin tournament of sorts, with the Challenger Series winners.
At the conclusion of the Toulouse leg, Kenya are 13th, having accumulated 40 points, with Uruguay (54 points), who were beaten to the top flight by one point, in 12th place while Canada are 14th, one point behind Kenya.
It means those three, alongside Tonga, the Challenger Series winners, will square it out for the one and final slot in the top flight and Kenya have to emerge victorious to stay in the big league.
With their erratic form in 2022-23, it is tough to predict whether Shujaa will have the wherewithal to overcome the challenge and retain their core status given they have already been beaten by Uruguay and Canada while Tonga are a potential banana skin.
Going by the performance in Toulouse, there is little hope for Shujaa fans as Kenya started by losing 19-5 to Uruguay, the second straight leg they were falling to the South Americans, before New Zealand thrashed them 31-5 to all but end their chances of surviving.
Canada hammered the last nail in the coffin, handing them a 33-7 defeat and Shujaa would later reach the 13th place final where they managed a 33-12 win over Japan to end the leg with three points.
Defeats against Uruguay and Canada, not the first time this season, therefore means Kenya are not guaranteed a place in next year’s top flight but have no choice other than winning the playoff, if they want to avoid featuring in the second tier next season.
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