NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 27 – After their 38-0 mauling of Kenya Harlequins, Kenya Commercial Bank assistant coach Dennis Mwanja insists the win is just the beginning of their title charge for this season’s Kenya Cup.
The bankers put in a ruthless performance as the curtains came up on the 2022/23 season and the former national team player insists their aim is to carry on the same momentum in subsequent games.
“The players really showed up today and my hope is that we are able to maintain the same momentum into the coming season. It was our first game of the season and it is a perfect start for us. We hope to keep it up for the rest of the season,” Mwanja said.
KCB missed out on the finals of last season’s Kenya Cup, losing out in the semis to Menengai Oilers.
The bankers, who defended their Impala Floodlit title earlier this month, had Darwin Mukidza to thank for opening the floodgates with his try in the seventh minute, which was subsequently converted by Isaac Njoroge.
Oscar Orano created daylight between the two teams when he scored a second try a few minutes later before namesake Oscar Simiyu added another try to secure the bankers’ huge lead heading into the second half.
Two more tries in the second half were enough for KCB to set themselves on the path to a title fight by cementing their credentials as one of the challengers.
Commenting on the activities of the day, Mwanja paid homage to new signings who he noted have taken the team up a notch in terms of their qualitative output.
“Our new signings have come in and improved the team and that is something we are grateful for as far as the transfer window is concerned. I wouldn’t say the season is long but the most important thing is to stay focused and take each game at a time,” he said.
Echoing his sentiments was former national sevens team captain Andrew Amonde who noted that every match is a learning process for the bankers as they execute a new playing philosophy.
“I think the most important thing for us was to have a positive vibe heading into this game. I think it was important that we pick up from where we left off in the Floodies. We have played and won our first game of course with a few mistakes and it is up to us to go back to the drawing board in readiness for the next match,” Amonde said.
In other matches of the opening weekend, defending champions Kabras Sugar made mince meat of Catholic University, trumping them 40-13 in Kakamega as University of Nairobi’s Mean Machine suffered a 72-6 humbling at the hands of the Menengai Oilers.
Kenyatta University’s Blak Blad beat Nakuru 34-8 as Homeboyz ousted Mwamba RFC 19-13.
