Menengai Oilers captain Tyson Maina has congratulated his teammates for their resilience and bravery to recover from 12-0 down to win 17-12 against Mwamba RFC in their third Pool D encounter at the ongoing Christie Sevens at the RFUEA Grounds in Nairobi on Saturday evening.
With the scores at 12-0, it seemed as if the National Sevens Circuit defending champions were heading out of the tournament at the group stage but for three quick tries to resuscitate their hopes.
“It was all down to the resilience of the boys and their desire to win. We started the day with a draw (against Nondies) so going into the last game of the day, heading into the quarters, we just had to win. The boys played their hearts out…and we have won,” Maina said.
The Nakuru-based side began with a 7-7 deadlock with Nondies before thrashing newbies Sigalagala 47-0 in their second match.
The oil merchants have had mixed outcomes thus far in their bid to retain their crown, their best return thus far in the circuit being a second-place finish at the Driftwood Sevens in Mombasa where they narrowly lost 10-7 to current leaders, Kabras Sugar RFC.
Maina concedes that they have punched below their weight thus far but is confident there is enough time for Oilers to resurrect their title charge.
“There’s a lot of expectations from the fans because we are the defending champions. Starting off from the first leg, things have not necessarily worked our way but I think with this Christie Sevens, we are much focused to finish in a better position,” he said.
They next have a date against Christie defending champions Strathmore Leos on Sunday and Maina says their comeback triumph against Kulabu has worked wonders for their morale.
“The win against Mwamba has been a big boost for the boys. They are pumped up for the quarters and they are raring to give their best,” the skipper added.
In other matches of the day, Kenyatta University’s Blak Blad were the surprise package of the day, dismissing Homeboyz 24-19, losing narrowly 22-19 to Quins before defeating Daystar University Falcons 24-7 in their third Pool B match.
It was a normal day in the office for circuit leaders Kabras Sugar as they won all their Pool A matches against Nakuru RFC, Masinde Muliro University and Impala RFC.
Another pre-tournament favourite, Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) were equally in imperious form as they made light work of their opponents, Strathmore Leos, Catholic University Monks and Kisumu RFC.
KCB coach Andrew Amonde said he expects the competition to get tougher for the bankers as they progress in the two-day tournament.
“It not yet time for sweating…it is only the first day. I think the main business is done…we are into the quarters. Our focus is on who we will face tomorrow (Sunday). That is where the work starts and the sweating starts because it will be a knockout,” the former national rugby 7s team captain said.
The bankers have a date with Mwamba RFC tomorrow morning at the same venue.
In other quarterfinal match-ups, Kabras Sugar face Quins as Oilers duel with Strathmore Leos.
Blak Blad and Nakuru will square off in the other knockout fixture.
