Kenya’s springboard to the game’s international elite zone

It isn’t very clear where the Safari Sevens idea was first mooted. Some (reliable) sources say it happened at a nightclub at the International Casino.

Others (equally reliable) say the idea was conceptualised at the prestigious Muthaiga Club. The two meetings might even have occurred on the same day, but that isn’t very clear. Something that is crystal though is that Robin Cahill led the conversation.

“Cahill drove the point home,” recalls Dennis Awori, a former chairman of the Kenya Rugby Football Union. “He said we needed a tournament, organised separately from the KRFU, a high profile meeting that Kenya would win even with the invitation of strong sides.

“He came up with the idea of the sevens, and the tag, Safari Sevens. We followed that up, and two years later, in 1996, we had the first Safari Sevens tournament.”

It could have been that Cahill was selling the international sevens idea to separate rugby influencers: to members of the KRFU board at one forum, and the members of the Patrons Society, a quiet group of Kenyan Rugby supporters, at another.

An instant success

Cahill’s sales pitch worked. The Safari Sevens could not have come at a better time. Driven to reality by Robin Cahill, The Patrons Society and the KRFU, the tournament was an instant success. The RFUEA Grounds experienced capacity crowds which were treated to an exciting, international-grade rugby sevens.

When the Safari Sevens gauntlet was thrown down, the real challenge was to the Kenya Sevens team. The response was quicker than expected. In the first year, Kenya only managed to win the inaugural plate competition in 1996, beating Uganda 38-12, while Public School Wanderers, frequent visitors to the Safari sevens for many years, won the main cup.

Initially, it was thought that it would take a few years for the national team to meet the Safari Sevens ‘standard’. But barely a year later, a psyched-up Kenya led by Sammy Khakame, backed by a fanatical crowd, tore the form book to shreds, beating Cumbria School boys 24-21 to lift the main cup trophy.

“Nobody thought that we would win in 1997, not even the administration; everyone was surprised,” said national sevens coach, Ham Onsando.

Around the time the idea of Safari Sevens was mooted, things began clicking. One week after Cahill had shared his international sevens idea, the KRFU ratified a new constitution which created posts for 10 directors and a full time Chief Executive Officer.

“The plan was to have the CEO’s office as the conduit to coordinate and plan all rugby activities,” said Ron Bukusi, the first KRFU CEO. The new office was exactly what was required to coordinate the new tournament.

Stroke of fortune

A wind of fortune, the Safari Sevens provided a springboard to the International Rugby Board’s World Sevens Series which had been launched in 1999, three years after the first Safari Sevens.

At first, Kenya only played in the Dubai and South Africa legs of the series. Kenya would later become a core member of the series, taking part in all the IRB Sevens legs from 2004.

“When the World Sevens series started in 1999, Kenya was already on the international map,” says Herbert Mwachiro who, for years, was the ‘voice’ of the Safari Sevens.

In 2000, the Safari Sevens doubled up as an Africa qualifying tournament for the 2001 Sevens World Cup in Argentina. Inspired, once again, by a fanatical support base, Kenya beat Namibia 14-7 in a close semi-final to qualify for the World cup finals, along with Zimbabwe. Paul Murunga, who scored both of Kenya’s tries against Namibia, has vivid memories.

“I tried to talk to Eric Kibe, our assistant coach, after the game but my words stuck in my mouth. I was speechless. It took a while for me to understand the reality that we had qualified for the World Cup.”

It was not the first time that Kenya had tried to qualify for the Sevens World Cup. Kenya had fallen short at the inaugural 1993 qualifiers in Italy, and the 1996 qualifiers in Dubai.

Since the 2001 qualifier, Kenya Sevens has been on a roll, and has qualified for all four World Cup finals; Argentina 2001, Hong Kong 2005, Dubai in 2009 and Moscow in June this year.

The Safari Sevens brought into current view the efforts of Watembezi Pacesetters RFC, a Kenyan touring team of rugby enthusiasts, who won the Dubai sevens in 1982 and 83, landing an invite to the 1987 Hong Kong sevens to play as Kenya for the first time.

“The Safari Sevens has been our food basket,” says Benjamin Ayimba, a former Kenya sevens player who coached Kenya to its highest point, the semi-finals of the 2009 World cup held in Dubai. To anyone who understand rugby, there couldn’t be a better platform to grow rugby than a regular international contest right at home.

The path to the sevens national team is quite straightforward. Represent your club at the national sevens circuit, appear for a team in the Safari Sevens and get your call up to the national side.

Mitch Ocholla was awarded his call up to the 2001 World Cup Sevens squad after a blistering performance at the Safari Sevens in 2000. “I knew I had to perform at the Safari Sevens,” recalls Ocholla. “That was my one chance to get recognised.”

Exponential growth

In 1999, Ronald Bukusi, the KRFU CEO, oversaw a sweeping change to local sevens rugby. All the local sevens tournaments were organised into a national circuit where clubs could focus all resources and players to a dedicated sevens period.

Competitions adopted the two-day format in which teams only play three games a day, providing a layered competition where teams found their competition level on day two based on their performance on the first day.

A dedicated sevens circuit provided rapid growth at club level, increasing exponentially the number of participating teams and clubs country-wide. The feeder system to club competition is similarly efficient.

Schools rugby was originally a preserve of schools within Nairobi and selected schools outside Nairobi in the 60’s to 80’s, competing mainly for the RFUEA Sevens and John Andrews Sevens trophies.

In 2004, the Kenya Secondary School Sports Association, KSSSA admitted the sevens version to its annual competition after admitting the fifteens version in 1990. KSSSA competition has had significant impact on rugby in Kenya; today, any secondary school in the country can compete for the coveted KSSSA rugby trophy, which provides a clear route for players to proceed to international arenas.

In its 18th edition, the Safaricom Sevens crowd can only be contained at the Moi International Sports Centre in Kasarani, a sign of its growth from level to level, strength to strength.

This year’s tournament director, Godwin Karuga, has an ambitious plan; to get the Safari Sevens into the highest competition possible - the IRB.

All this, thanks to the idea of the Safari Sevens and its coveted Robin Cahill Trophy. Hats off, to all the people who have made the Safari Tournament possible.