Kenya U20 suffer defeat in World U20 Trophy opening match

Kenya U20 faced a challenging start to their World U20 Trophy campaign, falling 25-7 to Uruguay in their opening match in Scotland.

Last year’s finalists, Uruguay, found it tough against a resilient Kenyan side, with the match only decided by two late tries from Los Teritos.

Kenya U20 improvement

In their previous encounter at the U20 Trophy in Brazil in 2019, Uruguay had secured a dominant 63-11 victory.

However, the Chipu squad of 2024 delivered a significantly improved performance, showcasing strong defense and powerful runs down the flanks.

With more precise handling and composure in attacking positions, Kenya could have achieved a more favorable outcome in this competitive contest.

Muscular scrum-half Pedro Hoblog gave Uruguay an early lead by darting over from close range in the 10th minute.

However, the anticipated flood of points did not materialize. Uruguay only managed to add three more points through a penalty kick by Icaro Amarillo until just before half-time. Inside-center Alfonso Perillo bulldozed his way through two defenders to score a try, converted by Amarillo, giving Uruguay a 15-0 lead at the break.

Swiss referee Ethan Glass had noted Kenya’s increasing penalty count, leading to a yellow card for Philip Okeyo in the 52nd minute for offside.

Kenya U20 try

Despite their numerical advantage, Uruguay struggled to capitalize and missed several scoring opportunities. Instead, Kenya scored next with Mike Wamalwa breaking through two tackles to touch down in the 56th minute.

As the match returned to equal numbers, Uruguay turned to their bench. Replacement front-rowers Santiago Cagnone and Francisco Garcia crossed the line to secure the victory for Uruguay, concluding the game with a 25-7 scoreline.

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