In November 2o18, The Kenya Cup kicked off its 16 week league journey that has come to a close today; 6th April 2019. The top six Kenya Cup teams will proceed to the playoffs while the last two teams are relegated to The Championship league.
Log leaders Kabras Sugar RFC have extended their lead on the log after beating the Resolution Impala Saracens 32-22 at the Impala Grounds. The win sees them seat comfortably at the top of the table with 74 points, two ahead of the second placed and defending champions KCB RFC who beat the Menengai Cream Homeboyz RFC 10-3 at the Jamhuri Grounds. Kenya Harlequins shut Nondies out of the 2018/2019 season playoffs by beating them 15-12 at the Impala Grounds.
Top Fry Nakuru’s 26-12 win over the Mean Machine moved them up from the 6th position to the fourth with 47 points. Stanbic Mwamba and Resolution Impala Saracens complete the fifth and sixth playoff positions; despite Stanbic Mwamba’s 22-32 loss to the Menengai Oilers at the Nakuru ASK Showgrounds they picked up a bonus point for scoring four tries in the match bringing their total points to 45. They are tied with sixth placed Resolution Impala Saracens who also have 45 points but Mwamba has a bigger point difference.
Strathmore Leos and Mean Machine finished eleven and twelve and are thus relegated from the Kenya Cup. Blakblad beat the Leos 24-0 at the Cage in Madaraka securing their much needed 10th place position. In the mid-table, Nondies, Menengai Oilers and Menengai Cream Homeboyz RFC finish seventh, eighth and ninth respectively as the league comes to an end.
Collated #KenyaCup FT scores
Resolution Impala Saracens 22 – Kabras Sugar 32
Kenya Harlequins 15 – Nondies 12
Strathmore Leos 0 – Blakblad 24
Mean Machine 12 – Top Fry Nakuru 26
Menengai Oilers 32 – Stanbic Mwamba 22
Menengai Cream Homeboyz 3 – KCB 10
Kabras Sugar RFC and KCB RC earned themselves a direct semifinal having finished first and second respectively. The playoffs serve a Ngong Road Derby on the 27th April when the third placed Kenya Harlequins will face Resolution Impala Saracens who finished sixth on the log at the RFUEA Grounds while Stanbic Mwamba will head to the Nakuru Athletics Club to meet Top Fry Nakuru RFC.
Kabras RFC will host the winner of the Stanbic Mwamba vs Top Fry Nakuru clash while KCB welcomes the Ngong Road Derby winner in the semifinals on 11th May 2019.
The Kenya Cup final will be held on the 18th of May in a venue that will be determined after the semifinals.
Photo: Dennis Ekanusu