Kenya Lionesses Freshia Awino is tackled by a South African opponent during
the Africa Cup Sevens final at the RFUEA grounds /HANDOUTThe Kenya Lionesses will embark on a high-performance training camp in South Africa in January as they prepare for Division Two of the World Sevens Series, which begins in March.
Head coach Simon Odongo said on Wednesday that the two-week camp in Stellenbosch will be used to upskill players, refine tactical formations and strengthen team cohesion as the squad targets earning core-team status for the 2026–27 World Sevens Series.
“The camp will be vital. There are certain things we need to work on to polish up after the Africa Cup and be in the right frame of mind for the Division Two tournament, which starts in March,” noted Odongo.
The Lionesses’ hopes of lifting the Africa Cup Sevens title ended on Sunday after a 22–0 loss to rivals South Africa in the final. Odongo said the team must improve its decision-making and execution.
“It was a tough final, but we did not execute well in attack. We only had one visit in their 22. Credit to South Africa—defensively, they were solid and did not concede a try over the two days," he said.
“Our game management has to be sharper. We have to play in the right areas. We spent too much time in our own half, and South Africa pounced on our mistakes.”
Odongo hopes Judith Auma, Diana Owino and Stella Wafula will be available for the camp and the World Sevens Series.
Wafula and Owino are currently in the United States with the Rhinos franchise, while Auma is recovering from injury.
“The trio are key players in our tactical set-up. They are strong ball carriers and game breakers who can win matches on any given day,” he said.
The Lionesses had an impressive run to the Africa Cup final, beginning with a 44–0 win over Cote d'Ivoire and a 36–0 victory over Ghana. They beat Zimbabwe 33–12 in the quarter-finals before edging Uganda 17–10 in the semi-finals.
Odongo is confident that the next meeting with South Africa will yield a different result.
“The gap between us and them is very narrow. Remember, they also picked some players from their World Cup squad for the event. I’m confident that we will win the next match against them," he said.
The players are currently on a one-week break and will resume training next week for a month-long programme.
