Eagles clip Shujaa’s wings in crucial pool clash

Both sides entered day two unbeaten. Although the USA had earlier suffered a 28–7 defeat to Germany, Kenya were brimming with confidence after dispatching Uruguay 17–7 to extend their winning streak to four matches.

The stage was evenly set, but it was the Americans who seized control.

The first half belonged to the Eagles. A well-weighted forward kick pierced Kenya’s defensive line, and Lucas Lacamp reacted quickest to gather the bouncing ball and race over for the opening try. He converted his own effort to hand the USA a 7–0 lead at halftime.

Shujaa struggled to find their usual attacking rhythm. Promising build-ups were undone by handling errors and mistimed passes at crucial moments, allowing momentum to slip away just as they sought to gain a foothold in the contest.

The second half brought little respite. Forward Aaron Cummings powered over for another converted try, with Lacamp again accurate from the tee to extend the lead to 14–0.

The Americans tightened their grip on the match, and substitute Adam Channel added a third converted try to stretch the score to 21–0, momentarily silencing the Nyayo crowd.

Captain George Ooro provided a late spark for Kenya, sprinting down the right flank to score and deny the USA a clean sheet. However, the consolation try was not enough to alter the outcome, as the match ended 21–5 in favour of the Eagles.

The result leaves Shujaa's level at 12 points, tied with the USA in the standings. However, the Americans advance on points difference, 73 to Kenya’s 65.

Kenya now sits in third place on the standings, with the same number of points as leaders Germany but with a slightly inferior point difference.

Attention now shifts to the next leg of the HSBC SVNS 2 series in Montevideo on March 21–22, where Shujaa will look to regroup and reignite their push for promotion.