Kenya 7s secured an 11th-place finish at the HSBC SVNS World Championship in Bordeaux after claiming a 26-7 victory over Uruguay in their final match of the tournament.
The result boosted Shujaa’s hopes of retaining their core status for next season, but Kevin Wambua’s charges must now await the outcome of the Fiji versus USA clash set for 4:26 p.m. A Fiji victory would confirm Kenya’s place among the core teams for the next campaign.
Having lost their opening four matches in Bordeaux, Shujaa entered the encounter knowing that a win was crucial to improving their survival prospects.
Kenya made the brighter start, with Vincent Onyala breaking the deadlock after crossing over for the opening try. David Nyangige added the conversion to hand Shujaa a 7-0 lead.
Uruguay responded before the interval through Francisco Landauer, whose converted try ensured the sides went into the break level at 7-7 after a tightly contested first half.
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Shujaa raised their intensity in the second half and regained the lead when John Okoth powered over for an unconverted try to make it 12-7.
Kenya then took control of the contest as Nyangige crossed for a converted try, stretching the advantage to 19-7 and putting daylight between the two sides.
Shujaa added a late score to seal a convincing 26-7 victory, ending their Bordeaux campaign on a positive note as they await the result that will determine their fate in the HSBC SVNS Series.
