Philadelphia Orlando backs Kenya Lionesses despite HSBC Division SVNS 2 setback
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Reading Time: 2min | Thu. 19.02.26. | 22:00
The Lionesses endured a tough outing in the six-team competition, finishing fifth overall with five points
Former Kenya Lionesses skipper Philadelphia Orlando has rallied behind the national women’s rugby sevens side following their fifth-place finish at the recent HSBC SVNS 2 tournament.
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Orlando, who is currently the UAE Women’s Rugby head coach, insisted the team still has what it takes to bounce back in the second leg.
The Lionesses endured a tough outing in the six-team competition, finishing fifth overall with five points. Kenya began brightly, narrowly edging out Brazil 15-12 to register their only win of the tournament.
They then suffered a 15-12 defeat to China before falling 12-10 to South Africa in another tightly contested encounter. A narrow 5-0 loss to Argentina followed, before the Lionesses wrapped up their campaign with a 14-5 defeat to Spain.
Despite the string of close losses, Orlando believes the results do not define the team’s potential.
“These are not the best results we wanted, but remember this is a competition; we have losers and winners. Lionesses are not losers.
They need to work on a few things: reaction when they have the ball; these are trainable things,” she told Mozzart Sport.
The former skipper also pointed to the pressure of playing at home as a possible factor in the team’s performance.
“Playing at home, sometimes you have jitters, as a player I know. When you are at home, much is expected of you. I understand them, but I believe they will do well in the second leg.
Never judge your team based on the first result. So many things can change moving forward. I believe in them,” Orlando offered.
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Orlando’s faith in the Lionesses is rooted in experience. She captained Kenya to a historic 10th-place finish at the Tokyo Olympic Games and had earlier represented the country at the Rio Olympics, where rugby sevens made its Olympic debut.
Her transition into coaching began while she was still an active player in Kenya, completing courses in 15s, sevens, and strength and conditioning.
A collaboration between the UAE Rugby Federation and former Rugby Africa President Khaled Babbou opened the door for Orlando to apply for a coaching role in Dubai.
Within weeks of relocating, she led the all-Emirati squad at the Arab Women’s Sevens in Tunisia, guiding them to a bronze medal finish.