The race to Kenya cup and Kenya Rugby Union Championships is
tight even as Menengai Oilers, Stanbic Mwamba and Top Fry Nakuru fight to
secure the two remaining Kenya Cup slots.
Oilers are in their second season in the top tier league and
have lived to their dark horse tag given to them by pundits at the start of the
season.
They have certainly impressed and looked like playoff
contenders, with two points clear of sixth placed Stanbic Mwamba and three
ahead of cross town rivals Top Fry Nakuru.
Oilers have lined up matches against KCB and Kenya
Harlequin.
Stanbic Mwamba lie sixth on the log, occupying the final
playoff slot. They play their remaining fixtures against Resolution Impala
Saracens and Nondescripts.
Top Fry Nakuru are just one point and one position outside
the playoff berths.
They play Kenya Harlequin and Western Bulls on consecutive
weekends, and the two time champions will certainly not give up the playoff
fight easily.
Heading into match day 15, there is another set of
potentially exciting fixtures -especially if the past few match days are
anything to go by.
Red hot Blak Blad have scorched their opponents in recent
weeks to climb to eighth and virtually secure their Kenya Cup status for next
season.
They play away to bottom of the table Kisumu at the Mamboleo
Showground. Blad were 31-3 winners in the first leg encounter.
Kenya Harlequin registered an important win on the road,
defeating Western Bulls last weekend to allay fears of relegation that have
lingered over the side.
Harlequin host Top Fry Nakuru at the RFUEA Ground, seeking
to exorcise the first leg memories that saw them squander an 18-3 lead,
eventually going down 25-18.
A win for Quins will certainly complicate Nakuru’s playoff
chances.
Third placed Homeboyz make the trip to Kakamega to take on
second from bottom Western Bulls whom they defeated 36-17 during the first leg.
This is one of two fixtures in the Western Kenya town, the
other one pitting leaders Kabras Sugar against tenth placed Nondescripts.
Kabras were 40-15 first leg winners.
Stanbic Mwamba are in the sixth and final playoff slot.
Their first leg encounter against fourth placed Resolution Impala Saracens
ended in a 26-24 loss and Saturday’s return fixture at the Railway Club is both
an opportunity to avenge this loss and keep Kulabu’s playoff qualification
hopes alive.
Defending champions KCB were made to fight for the 43-13
first leg win away to Menengai Oilers whom they host at the KCB Sports Club.
The second placed bankers will be wary of the threat posed
by the playoff chasing Oilers who sit fifth on the log and this should make for
an entertaining fixture.
While Strathmore Leos, Masinde Muliro University of Science
and Technology, and Mean Machine have done enough to secure Championship playoff
qualification, there still is an almighty battle to secure the remaining three
slots with two rounds of the regular season still to play.
Any one of these six teams – USIU Martials, Egerton Wasps,
South Coast Pirates, Northern Suburbs, UoE Trojans and Catholic Monks could
still sneak into the post season but this is purely dependent on the outcomes
of their remaining fixtures.
Fast forward to match day 15 fixtures and Strathmore Leos
will be out to extend their perfect run this season when they host relegation
threatened Mombasa at The Cage in Madaraka.
The Leos have been flawless all season in their quest to
return to the top tier Kenya Cup, boasting 14 wins from 14 outings and as
mentioned earlier in this text, have already secured home semifinal
qualification.
They warmed up for this clash with a 33-15 win away to the
Catholic Monks while Mombasa fell 29-13 to South Coast Pirates in an
entertaining Pwani Derby fixture last weekend at the Mombasa Sports Club.
Second placed MMUST are at home to already relegated Kisii.
MMUST were made to work for last weekend’s 5-0 win away to
Eldoret as Kisii were beaten at home, going down 16-3 to playoff chasing USIU
Martials.
Two teams with playoff ambitions duel at the Catholic
University ground. These are seventh placed Northern Suburbs and sixth placed
South Coast Pirates.
The two sides registered confidence boosting wins on match
day 14, Suburbs stunning pre-match favorites Mean Machine 18-10 as Pirates won
their derby clash against Mombasa.
Playoff qualification may have already been secured for Mean
Machine but they will be out to bounce back from last weekend’s shock result to
Suburbs when they host Catholic Monks who will be out to secure a positive
result that could keep their playoff and survival hopes alive.
The USIU Martials are at home to the UoE Trojans with
Eldoret hosting Egerton Wasps.
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