Shujaa face a moment of truth as the World Seven Series promotion playoff kicks off today in Madrid.
Kevin Wambua's charges will be playing at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium—the home of Spanish football giants, Athletico Madrid and they hope the ground will spur them to return to core status by Sunday evening.
A year ago, Shujaa were sent packing from the World Seven Series after losing to Canada 12-7 at Twickenham in London after a 19-year stay in the top tier of Sevens rugby
Fast forward a young, hungry and ambitious side playing to their strengths qualified for the Paris Olympics by beating South Africa 17-12 in the Africa Sevens final in Harare in September.
They went on to finish second in the Challenger Sevens Series with 48 points to qualify for the promotion playoff.
The arithmetic for Kenya is simple—win all your pool games to get a favourable draw in the quarterfinals.
A win in the last eight will see Kenyan advance to the semifinals and return to core status for the 2024-2025 World Seven Series.
The Kenyans have an uphill task when they open their campaign against Samoa today at 6:25 pm in their first match.
The two sides last met during the Toulouse Sevens in May last year with the Pacific Islanders winning 17-10.
Overall, there have been 24 meetings between both sides since 2014 with Kenya winning a dozen times in a competitive contest between both sides.
Coach Kevin Wambua said they have done their analysis on them and expect a tough clash.
"They are a physical side who play expansive rugby and we must be wary of the threat they bring. We expect a close match,” said Wambua
Shujaa face Spain next at 10:18 pm in their second preliminary match. The two sides have clashed 20 times with Shujaa winning 12 times and Spain (seven) with one draw
Shujaa's final preliminary match will be against Chile on Saturday at 8:18 pm. Kenya have an edge after winning all three encounters 38-5, 26-19, and 21-19 in the Sevens Series.
Co-captain Vincent Onyala said they have had solid preparation in the Spanish capital ahead of a make-or-break weekend of sevens rugby.
"The boys are in good spirits and we have had a good week of training and acclimatising to the weather. We are ready for battle," said Onyala.
