Kenya Under-20 head rugby coach Paul Odera has cited the lineout and kicking as their main undoing ahead of the Junior Rugby World Trophy slated for Brazil in July.
Speaking yesterday, Odera said they had put in a formal request through Kenya Rugby Union, to the World Rugby, to get technical expertise in the two areas.
“We need to get expertise in those two facets of play if we are to be competitive in Brazil,” he added. KRU director of rugby, Thomas Odundo, said they are in consultations with World Rugby pertaining the matter.
"We are talking to World Rugby to see if they can second to us one or two coaches before the event,” he added. Kenya beat Namibia 21-18 in a pulsating match in Africa U-20 final to qualify for the Junior Rugby World Cup a fortnight ago.
“From our match against Namibia, we had a couple of issues in the lineout and we lost a couple of throws. The lineout is such a key component of rugby that one must get it right. Our kicking was not also accurate from the tee and we left 12 points on the pitch. Going forward, we need to convert tries if we are to win matches,” he added.
Odera said the team will resume training next week and was hopeful of playing build-up matches before the global tournament. “We are looking at playing three matches to test our systems and correct the flaws we had at Africa event,” added Odera.
Odera expressed confidence that some of the players in the team will play for Simbas in the near future. "If we are looking at qualifying for the Rugby World Cup in four years, then these are the players to nurture and expose,” he added.
Some of the countries that have qualified for the Junior World Trophy are Uruguay, Tonga, Italy and USA.
