Day 2 of the Rugby Africa Cup served splendid rugby at both ends of the tournament, but it was in the final game of the day that the stars came out to shine. As if saving the best for last, Zimbabwe and Kenya came out swinging, going toe to toe at every turn.
A dazzling Edward Sigauke run resulted in a Brandon Mudzekenyedzi try in the 3rd minute of the game, but the Simbas soon replied with a try of their own through hooker Eugene Sifuna who dotted down from the back of a rolling maul. Both tries were not converted.
The Sables then briefly went ahead through an Ian Prior penalty but Jones Kubu immediately matched that to tie the game at 8 apiece in the 20th minute. A yellow card to Griffin Chao was punished as the Kenyans conceded through the quick thinking of captain Hilton Mudariki of the Sables, with Ian Prior missing the conversion once again. Jone Kubu then pulled back 3 points off the tee, before Griffin Chao came back from the sin bin to make amends for his earlier transgression.
The Kenya Simbas were very brutal at the breakdowns, forcing turnovers that resulted in penalties that were not punished. The Kenyan scrum was initially dominant in the game, but it was at the line out and maul where they found more success, until the introduction of replacement hooker Teddy Akala. The Sables, on the other hand, looked like they had run out of ideas, often kicking away possession in good attacking positions.
The introduction of Keegan Jourbet totally changed the game for the Sables. The Zimbabwe backline started seeing more of the ball while the forwards enjoyed putting together multiple phases, which in the 63rd minute led to the try by Aiden Burnett, which Ian Prior converted. For the first time in the second half, the Sables went ahead 20:18, and never looked back. To widen the gap, Ian Prior first slotted in a drop goal, then followed it up with 2 successful penalties.
A late Kenyan surge wasn’t enough to keep their Rugby World Cup dreams alive, but they still have a 3rd place to play for this Saturday. For the Sables, a win against Namibia will directly send them to Australia 2027, but should they lose, they have an opportunity to play the World Cup qualification match against the second team from Asia.
