Kenya U20 (Chipu) faced consecutive defeats in the World U20 Trophy matches at Hive Stadium in Edinburgh.
After losing their opener to Uruguay 27-5, they struggled against the Netherlands, succumbing to a 51-3 defeat.
Kenya U20 struggles
The Netherlands, building on their performance against the USA last Tuesday, dominated Kenya within the first 40 minutes on Sunday. Scrum-half Niek Doornenbal opened the scoring for the Dutch in less than two minutes, slipping through tackles near the line.
Full-back Ilan Vaasen converted but missed the extras for centre Kees de Bruin’s try soon after.
The Netherlands continued to control the game, with Vaasen adding a penalty in the 11th minute, extending their lead to 15 points.
Kenya’s task became more challenging five minutes later when second row Clein Omukhulu received a yellow card for illegally bringing down a driving maul.
The Dutch capitalized immediately, with number eight Joris Smits scoring from a powerful lineout drive. Vaasen added an impressive touchline conversion.
Kenya got on the scoreboard with a penalty by James Olela as the match entered its second quarter. However, the respite was brief, as Netherlands fly-half Tom Hijdra found Kit Temperley with a fine miss pass, and the Dutch captain finished the move.
This try secured a bonus point for the Netherlands, who scored twice more before halftime. Smits crossed for his second try from another driving maul, and prop Toine Obiang Nguema powered over from a penalty move.
Kenya U20 resilience
Kenya showed resilience after the break, making it tougher for the Dutch to score. It took the Netherlands over 22 minutes into the second half to add their seventh try, with Vaasen finishing an impressive counter-attack in the left corner.
Replacement winger Flynn Baker added the final try in the 74th minute with an impressive finish on the opposite flank. Despite Vaasen missing both touchline conversions in the second half, the Dutch secured a comfortable 51-3 victory, maintaining their hopes of reaching the final in their tournament debut.
