Simiyu calls for better execution in Emirates Invitational Sevens

Kenya Sevens head coach Innocent “Namcos” Simiyu is working on his team’s intensity and execution ahead of the second leg of the Emirates Invitational Sevens starting Friday at the Sevens Stadium, Dubai.

Simiyu said they are exploring ways on how to get their game going from the first minute with sustained intensity for the whole period of 14 minutes.

On Saturday, Kenya edged out Japan 31-14 to finish third during the first leg of the Emirates Invitational Sevens where Argentina claimed their third win on the trot, beating France 19-7 in the final.

Kenya had lost to France 17-5 in the semi-finals, a day after they had drawn 19-19 in the preliminaries.

Argentina edged out Kenya Sevens 21-14 and 45-7 respectively in the finals of Madrid Sevens in February.

“We made a couple of unforced errors in the first half that swayed the momentum to France. That is why we must work on reducing our errors,” said Simiyu, adding that he is determined to have his players getting to 100 percent in terms of body conditioning.

“I am lucky I have all the players for selection with no injuries save for Samuel Oliech, who had a surgery after he got injured in training early last week,” explained Simiyu, who is happy that his players have improved in kick-offs and defence.

The team held their first training on Tuesday since last weekend.

Kenya opens their quest against Uganda in their Pool “Blue” at 11.09am on Friday before meeting Canada at 3.14pm. They will wrap up against Spain at 5.45pm. Argentina, Japan, Chile and France are in Pool “Red.”

At the same time, Kenya Lionesses coach Felix Oloo said the second leg of the Emirates Invitational Sevens will give them another opportunity to improve after they failed to win a match in the first leg.

“Here, intensity is on another level but we are taking it positively,” said Oloo.”We must work harder, smarter and sharper in all our executions.”

Oloo noted that there was tremendous improvement from Madrid albeit slow.

“Our players now understand the importance of keeping possession,” noted Oloo adding that he has allowed his players to express themselves.

“We really must improve in our defense especially when it comes to one-on-one and the breakdown. Communication is also vital,” said Oloo explaining that it's a process and that soon their fans will be happy.

“I know they care about the outcome but this is a process that calls for patience but again losing shouldn’t be a norm,” said Oloo.

The Lionesses will take on winners of the first leg Canada at 9.22am before meeting France at 1.24pm.

They will then play Japan in their last match of the day at 5.04pm before taking on Brazil and the USA on Saturday.