School Games: Strathmore, Upper Hill floor opponents, cruise to Rugby 15s semis

 Strathmore School Rugby 15s finished their preliminary matches in style, crushing Hospital Hill 38-13 to sail to the semi-finals of Nairobi Region Secondary Sports Association school games held at Nairobi School on Thursday.

To the surprise of many, The Bandits kicked off their campaign strongly, flooring former champions Nairobi School 24-22 in a thriller before spanking giants Ofafa Jericho 22-12 in their second game on Wednesday.

Thursday’s match was just an icing on the cake for the private school which looks unstoppable this year.

Strathmore showed intent from the onset of the game, John Mogusu and Kakai Simiyu scored in quick succession and clinical conversions by Dwain Chomba gave them a 14-0 lead.

Hospital Hill responded with a penalty and a try to reduce the deficit to 14-08 but Strathmore extended their lead through Simiyu to 21-08 on the stroke of half-time.

The second half produced a similar show as the Bandits dominated Nyari Boys to win by a huge margin.

Head coach David Ndimba was impressed by his boys’ performance.

“My boys played very well, I’m proud of them. They paid attention to small details and stuck to our plan. We aim to reach the final and lift the title,” noted Ndimba.

They will now face Lenana School who were crushed by Dagoretti High school 22-18 in a must-win game, although they qualified after The Ditchez were judged to have fielded an ineligible player in the second half.

Another semi-final will see Upper Hill and Nairobi school renew rivalry after both won their last preliminary matches to book a place in the semis.

Reigning champions Upper Hill had earlier condemned Moi Forces Academy to a 63-0 defeat, while Nairobi school edged out Ofafa Jericho 20-07 in a late kick-off.

“We are expecting an interesting, intense match. It will be interesting to see how the match spins out, but I believe we shall win,” said Upper Hill’s head coach Newton Mose.

Upper Hill stunned Nairobi School 43-03 when the two sides clashed last year and the hosts will be eying a revenge on Friday.

Hockey boys will also see rivalries renewed as Nairobi School clash with Starehe while Lenana School will play Hospital Hill.

Reigning champions Hospital Hill were held by Starehe to a goalless draw in their last match of the group stage, topping their group with seven points while Starehe finished second with five points.

Former champions Nairobi School played out a 0-0 draw with Lenana; both teams topped Group ‘B’ with five points though Nairobi had a superior goal difference.

Last year, Starehe defeated Nairobi School 3-1 on post-match penalties in the quarterfinals, while Hospital Hill stunned Lenana 1-0 in a nail-biting clash.

In the girls' category, reigning champions Mwiki, former champions Pangani, St. George's Girls, and Ngara Girls booked a place in the semis after topping their groups.

Mwiki remained perfect, winning their last match 2-0 against last year’s semi-finalists Buruburu Girls to top group A while Pangani stunned Starehe Girls 1-0 to finish second.

Mwiki will clash with St. George's in the first semi-final, while Pangani will play Ngara Girls in the second semi-final.

Strathmore in action against Hosptital Hill in a preliminary match at Nairobi School. Photo Courtesy: Kevin Otenga (Citizen Digital)