Simbas boss Odera still optimistic of World Cup qualification
By Benson Mbare, July 16, 2022
The national rugby 15s team may have missed out on a direct ticket to qualifying for the 2023 world cup but the Paul Odera-coached side have another stab on their quest to feature in the first rugby world cup appearance.
However, the dream is not done yet as the Simbas will once again attempt to qualify for the World Cup via the Repêchage route following their humiliating loss to Namibia in the Africa Cup final.
The Simbas lost 36-0 to Namibia and as a result, missed direct qualification to the global showpiece.
Repêchage is the final stage of the qualification process and will take place in November 2022 with four teams playing in a round-robin format.
Kenya will have to battle against three teams from across Asia/Pacific, the Americas and Europe in the Final Qualification Tournament, which is being held for the second Rugby World Cup tournament running in November.
Kenya Simbas are set to face Portugal, Tonga/Hong Kong, Chile/USA.
The final Repêchage tournament for the 2023 Rugby World Cup is set to be held in Dubai from 6-18 November.
The winner of the Repêchage will complete the 8 additional qualifiers and will be in Pool C of the 20-team World Cup against Wales, Australia, Fiji, and Georgia.
The winner of the four-team tournament will secure the last remaining ticket for the 2023 Rugby World cup.
Simba’s last appearance in the Repêchage was in 2018 when they lost all their matches against Germany, Hong Kong and Canada
The venue where the games will be played is yet to be announced.
In their quest to earn the direct ticket, the Kenya Simba showcased their talent in the quarter-final against rivals Uganda with an impressive 42-7 to book a semi-final date with Algeria.
The Paul Odera charges then topped that performance with a nail-biting 36-33 win against Algeria to send themselves to the final where they would face Namibia who had dispatched Zimbabwe 34-19 in the other semi-final.
However, the national team fell short of their goal with a 36-0 loss to Africa champions Namibia.
Namibia has been a hard nut to crack for Kenya, having lost 12 times overall, this being the 7th consecutive loss.
The national team will now shift their focus on correcting their repeated mistakes that cost them the final and hope to right their wrongs in the Repêchage tournament in November.