NAIROBI, Kenya, July 27 – National rugby Sevens team coach Damian McGrath has earmarked Uganda and Jamaica as vulnerable opponents they can exploit in their bid to qualify for the knockout stages of the Commonwealth Games.
McGrath said losing to any of the two would put their dreams in jeopardy albeit he is wary of underrating these opponents.
“We are a World Rugby Series team. I mean…it would be a surprise if we lost to Uganda and Jamaica. However, we have to be careful not to be overconfident against any of these teams. Friday (against Uganda) is a big day for us since we will be playing for the first time in weeks. If we can get some miles in our legs that would stand us in good stead for the rest of the tournament,” the former Canada head coach said.
Shujaa are in Pool D and in addition to their East African neighbours and Jamaica, will face pre-tournament favourites Australia on Saturday.
McGrath is unfazed by the challenge posed by the Aussies and reckons that their fancied opponents will be equally wary of them.
“We will see what happens on Saturday. Obviously, it would be in their best interest to be wary of us. The first objective is to get to the knockout stages because once you do so, anything can happen. I hope history can repeat itself with Kenya,” McGrath, who turned out for English side Batley Bulldogs in his playing days, said.
McGrath, who was the immediate former coach of the German Sevens team, said Shujaa have made gigantic leaps in their training ever since he was handed the reins in May this year.
“They (players) feel good and are training well. They have got a smile on their faces because they are in a better place. It is a long year and there is more to come. Even if things don’t go well for us at this tournament, there are many other competitions ahead and for sure we will be a force to reckon with,” he said.
Echoing his sentiments, skipper Nelson Oyoo described their matches against Uganda and Jamaica as must-wins and revealed they are raring to go for Friday.
“Those are the games that will determine whether we make it to the medal bracket or not… that is if we make it to the quarterfinals. That (winning) is what we are going to do. Right now, the pressure that we felt inside of us has calmed down since we have got our systems right,” the Nakuru RFC winger said.
He described the morale in the camp as tangible as the ‘troops’ continue to go through their paces ahead of their first battle in Birmingham.
“We have settled really well…we have had our first session and are looking ahead to the second one. The players have gelled quite well and the spirits are high. We have gone back to our old style of playing…centred on speed. We promise to fight and bring back a medal from here,” Oyoo said.
