Former Kenya Sevens captain Tony Omondi to feature in Dubai 7s
.jpg)
Reading Time: 3min | Mon. 25.11.24. | 11:34
Omondi was locked out of the Shujaa squad due to contractual issues between them and the Kenya Rugby Union (KRU)
Former Kenya Sevens co-captain Tony Omondi has been drafted into the Shogun RFC squad for the opening leg of the HSBC SVNS Series; Dubai 7s slated for Saturday 30 November to Sunday 1 December at the Sevens Stadium.
Omondi was locked out of the Shujaa squad due to contractual issues between them and the Kenya Rugby Union (KRU). Together with Vincent Onyala, they will not feature for Shujaa in the upcoming two legs of the global series.
Shogun will be coached by Sandile Ngcobo with Marek Churcher serving as the assistant coach. They will be looking to go a step further after coming in second during the 2024 Safari Sevens where they went down 12-0 to Shujaa in the final.
At the same time, Shujaa’s head coach Kevin Wambua has remained optimistic that the duo will feature for the team from the third leg of the series.
The former Mwamba RFC tactician noted that they have been in communication and hope the issues will be resolved.
“With regards to Tony and Onyala, we have been in constant communication. For them, it’s just contractual issues, something that we are talking about, and hopefully, by the time we come back and start the next block, everything will be sorted,” Wambua said.
He went on to explain that their return to the squad went beyond paperwork. He emphasized the importance of match fitness, noting that both players needed to meet the team’s physical and tactical readiness standards before they could be considered for selection.
“And it’s not like they have been chased away by anybody. It’s just that they have not signed a contract and they are not available for the first two legs.
You also have to understand that even if they showed up, there are KPIs such as fitness which they have to meet since they have not been around for a while,” he explained.
For Wambua, the duo’s absence is a blessing in disguise as it gives him the chance to build depth and develop a crop of players who are ready to maintain the squad's competitive edge whenever called up.
“It is also an opportunity to build depth since it is going to be a long season. It’s an important season for us as we want to retain core status. We take the opportunity to build depth in terms of leadership and exposing more players.
If you look at the set-up, 3/4 took part in the Safari 7s for Morans and Shujaa. At the end of the day, we know individual players bring individual qualities, but if you want to be at the top and stay at the top, it should be a system and it has to be a process,” he concluded.
Shujaa have been placed in a tough Pool A that sees them tackle France, South Africa, and Australia.
.jpg)
