Weekly Ramble

This weekend sees the fourteenth edition of the Safari Sevens. A great achievement on its own and yet another milestone broken. The event has grown in leaps and bounds and so has its stature. Part of the initial thinking behind the Safari Sevens was to improve our seven a side play (remember, Safari Sevens is older than the IRB Sevens Circuit) as well as to give our national sevens team an opportunity to play in front of their home crowd.

As part of the aim of improving our sevens, the Safari Sevens has seen at times upto four or five local sides take part in the event. The reserved spots have usually been for the National team and for emerging Kenya side or Shujaa. Other teams that have participated include the Scorpions, a local select side and most importantly, the winner of the National Sevens circuit. I will explore these two a little bit.

For the last three years, the winner of the National Sevens Circuit has not had a slot in the Safari Sevens. By design or by fault, I can't say, but to me we are already killing one of the aims of the Safari Sevens. And I wonder, in what way are we then developing our "other" sevens players? We all know that there is pitiful else to show for winning the National Sevens Circuit, but for the winners, it is at least an opportunity to make their fans, and more importantly their sponsors happy.

The second goal, to showcase the National Sevens Squad locally? Is there now really a need for this? With global satellite television coverage, I have personally watched each and every game they have played this year! And so I believe have most staunch rugby fans. And by refusing to take the event to a ground that can accommodate more people, who then are these people who need to see the National Sevens team? Why then do we need the Safari Sevens?

As the premier sevens event in Africa, it is now being used by CAR to develop rugby in the Africa. Our goal? I don't know. And to what cost? Kenya is now way above all African countries save South Africa in the Sevens version of the game. This means that the only real competition we have for the event is the Emerging Springboks, who themselves will now be hard put to beat this particular side. So who then will provide the competition for us? Will the event be worth the high Ksh. 900.00 entrance fee settled on? (Word has it the price is high to keep out a larger crowd... duuuh..).

At this point I will defer with the KRFU Chairman's comments made last year. I think it's time to bring in the mercenaries. There are bands of players, put together from all over the world, who will attend any tournament with sufficient prize money. And with over Ksh. 30M in the event kitty, I do not think prize money is now too far fetched. Given that we pamper teams like Samoa and Fiji with allowances and God knows what else incentive, why not use prize money as the incentive? Teams like British Army, The Penguins and even the Barbarians would be all to glad to take a stab at the prize money if their airfares were paid. And since we insist on holding the event in a playground and not a world class sporting facility, why would we expect the World's best to come for the Safari Sevens? And that ladies and gentlemen, is my ramble for the week.

All in all, do enjoy yourselves at the Tusker Safari Sevens this weekend. I know I will.