The Kenya men’s sevens team, known as the ‘Shujaa’, were once regarded as everyone’s second team on the World Series circuit.
After qualifying from the Challenger series to get back onto the SVNS circuit for 2024/25, they are fast becoming the story of the season after taking over Perth.
Their fans have been dubbed ‘Kenya corner’ as they have turned up in droves at HBF Park to support the team, which has blown expectations out of the water.
Show us a better stand at the #HSBCSVNSPER !! We’ll wait 😎#Shujaa #ProudlyKenyan 🖤🤍❤💚 pic.twitter.com/xtx5e9UIhX
— Shujaa (@KenyaSevens) January 25, 2025
In their opener on day one against the All Blacks Sevens, they matched the Kiwis try for try at 14-all before New Zealand broke away for a 29-14 win.
The pushed the number one ranked side Fiji to the brink, who overcame a 14-7 deficit to get past the Kenyans 21-14.
But it was in their final game that the Shujaa set the Kenyan corner alight, knocking off unbeaten Uruguay 19-5 who had beaten both Fiji and New Zealand earlier.
Footy skills + vibes 😎@OfficialKRU getting us underway in style on Day Two 🇰🇪#HSBCSVNS | #HSBCSVNSPER pic.twitter.com/Zrp1Y2bRMv
— HSBC SVNS (@SVNSSeries) January 25, 2025
Playing with swagger in their 9th place semi-final against USA, Kenya scraped to a 26-21 win with the fans delighted with the result.
They have booked a date with New Zealand for a rematch for the 9th place final on day three.
In Dubai the team finished 10th, but on the second leg in Cape Town they forced their way into the quarter-finals, ultimately falling to Argentina.
