© Courtesy
© Courtesy

Former Nakuru RFC and Chipu forward joins American Major League champions

Reading Time: 2min | Thu. 13.04.23. | 09:51

He joins a side founded five years ago with 2022 as their most successful year yet

Former Nakuru RFC forward Monate Akuei has joined Major League Rugby champions New York.

Akuei, who also played his club rugby at Nakuru and has played for Kenya at the U-20 level, featuring in the U-20 Barthes Trophy squad in 2018 and most recently for Kenya Simbas becomes the first Kenyan-born South Sudanese to play in the MLR

“Welcome to Rugby New York, @monate_akuei. We’re thrilled to announce the signing of our newest Ironworker. A dynamic loose forward, Monate also has an inspiring backstory that we can’t wait to share with you. For now, we look forward to seeing him in NY colors. (sic),” the club announced on twitter on Wednesday 12 April.

He was part of the Simbas squad that won the Elgon Cup en route to finishing second to Zimbabwe in the 2019 Victoria Cup that also featured Uganda and Zambia.

A former refugee from South Sudan who schooled at Kirobon High School in Kenya before signing for Nakuru RFC and eventually landing a pro deal in the US, Akuei’s star keeps on shinning.

He joins a side founded five years ago with 2022 as their most successful year yet. The team, nicknamed Ironworkers, played an exhibition season in spring 2018 and joined MLR for its second full season in 2019.

In 2022, its first season under the Rugby New York name, the team made its first MLR Final appearance, winning a title in front of 1,979 attendees at Red Bull Arena in nearby Harrison, New Jersey.

In 2022, they won the East Conference Eliminator, the East Conference Final and the MLR against Seattle Seawolves in a 30-15.



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Monate AkueiMajor League RugbyRugby New York

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