Race for playoff spots heats up in Kenya Cup rugby

With three matches left in the Kenya Cup rugby competition regular season, the race for playoff spots has intensified.

Four teams – Kabras Sugar, KCB, Homeboyz and Resolution Impala Saracens – are assured of making the playoffs but there are still two spots up for grabs.

Leaders Kabras Sugar have done enough to secure home semifinal qualification for a second successive season.  Their last three fixtures pit them away to Resolution Impala Saracens before winding up with fixtures against Nondescripts (home) and Blak Blad (away).

Second-placed defending champions KCB have potentially tricky encounters that could yet put paid to their home semifinal ambitions. They play away to Top Fry Nakuru before taking on Menengai Oilers (home) and Homeboyz (away). Victory in all three fixtures will guarantee them a top-two finish, but more importantly home semifinal qualification.

Homeboyz are third, just five points adrift of home semifinal qualification. Their last three fixtures see them face Menengai Oilers (away), Western Bulls (away) and KCB (home).

They can secure the semifinal berth by winning all three matches including their encounter against KCB while hoping that the same opponents lose at least two of their three remaining matches.

This would see the deejays accumulate anything between 66 and 69 points with KCB securing anything between 63 and 66 points.

Resolution Impala Saracens are currently on 41 points. Their last three matches see them face Kabras (home), Stanbic Mwamba (away) and Kisumu (home). A victory in one of their three remaining fixtures will be enough

Three teams, namely Menengai Oilers (36 points), Top Fry Nakuru (33 points) and Stanbic Mwamba (29 points) will be gunning for the remaining playoff spots.

Victory for Oilers in their final three fixtures against Homeboyz (home), KCB (away) and Kenya Harlequin (away) could see them accumulate between 48 and 51 points. One win from these three fixtures could take the Oilers to 40 or 41 points if they secure a bonus-point victory.

Top Fry Nakuru’s last three fixtures are against KCB (home), Kenya Harlequin (away) and Western Bulls (home).

Victory in these three matches could take them to between 45 and 48 points. Victory in two of these three outings could take them to between 41 and 43 points.

Up next for Kulabu are fixtures against Kisumu (away), Resolution Impala Saracens (home) and Nondescripts (away). Should they win all these fixtures, they could be anywhere between 41 and 44 points. Two wins will see them anywhere between 37 and 39 points while a solitary win will not be enough.

In partnership with  ANA and Sports Leo