By John Kwoba
NAIROBI, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Kenya will implement a raft of changes in its Sevens national team squad after its shock performance at the World Cup, officials said on Monday.
Kenya Rugby Union (KRU) Chairman Richard Omwela said the team failed to play to its potential, coming into the competition just days after the reinstatement of its head coach Innocent Simiyu, who claimed full responsibility for insubordination.
After cruising past Tonga in their opener in San Francisco (USA), Kenya dropped their guard leading Scotland 26-0 at half time to lose 32-26 to forfeit their only hopes to contest for the World Cup.
Now Omwela said the team's implosion in San Francisco will force the union to carry out "far-reaching changes" when they return home Tuesday.
"Contracts are over. The World Cup is over. We need to look at every player individually. We gave away a 26-0 lead against Scotland. Maybe we should have been more aggressive in defense," said Omwela.
Out of the five games that Kenya played at the World Cup, it only managed one win over Tonga and even lost to low key teams like Japan.
This was a below par performance compared with the 2013 and 2009 editions where Kenya reached the semifinals under the leadership of Mike Friday and Benjamin Ayimba respectively.
Simiyu, in his defense, said the poor preparation and player boycott to training prior to their departure to San Francisco following his sacking and re-hiring was to blame for the dismal show.
The Kenyan players had caused a scene in Paris, The last stop in the World Series when they blocked out the sponsors logo off their shirts to show their frustration having not been paid their allowances.
"The team lost four weeks of preparations, and we only had two weeks to train. It was not ideal to get the players in ideal playing condition," he said.
Kenya's Captain Oscar Ayodi said the players will hold part of the blame but noted that the management will also have their part.
This season, Kenya finished second in two rounds of the World Series in Hong Kong and Vancouver.
It also failed to win a medal at the Commonwealth Games and now it has lost badly in the World Cup. The next season for the team starts in November. Enditem
