Kenya Cup

Last updated
Kenya Cup
Kenya Cup logo.png
Competition logo
Sport Rugby union
Instituted1970
Number of teams11
CountryFlag of Kenya.svg  Kenya
Holders Kabras Sugar RC (2022)
Most titles Nondescripts RFC (17 titles)
Website Kenya Cup Official Website
Related competition Nationwide League
Eric Shirley Shield

Found title,

A maul during a match between KCB RFC and Quins Kenyaclubrugbykcb.jpg
A maul during a match between KCB RFC and Quins

The Kenya Cup is the top tier club rugby union competition in Kenya organized by the Kenya Rugby Union. For the 2019-2020 season, twelve teams are divided into two pools of six, Each team plays home and away against each team in its pool and once against each team in the other pool. The top six teams in the single-table format qualify for the playoff finals: the top two teams secure a home semi-final. The other four teams are paired into two knock-out games: the winners of the two games each play one of the two top-ranked teams (that had secured an automatic semi-final berth). The winners of the two semi-final fixtures play in the final to determine the overall winner(the top-ranked team before the playoffs hosts the final).

Contents

Promotion and relegation exists between the Kenya Cup, Championship and Nationwide leagues. The two lowest placed teams in the Kenya Cup are relegated to the Championship, and the top two teams in the Championship are promoted to the Kenya Cup. Games are played on Saturday afternoons usually preceded by corresponding fixtures in the Eric Shirley Shield.

The Kenya Cup was founded in 1970 by the newly formed Kenya Rugby Football Union with the first tournament won by Impala RFC. [1]

KCB RFC retained the Kenya Cup for a third successive time after a 23-15 victory over Kabras Sugar in the final contested on 18 May 2019 at the Kakamega Showgrounds. [2]

2021 Kenya Cup teams

TeamLocationStadiumCapacity
Kenya Harlequin F.C. Nairobi RFUEA Ground 6,000
Menengai Oilers Nakuru City Nakuru Showgrounds 6,000
Blak Blad RFC Nairobi City Kenyatta University Grounds 5,000
Kabras Sugar RFC Kakamega City Bull Ring Kakamega 5,000
Nondescripts RFC Nairobi Ngong Race Course 5,000
Impala Saracens Nairobi City Impala Ground 2,000
KCB RFC Nairobi The Den 2,000
Mwamba RFC Nairobi Nairobi Railways Club 2,000
Top Fry Nakuru RFC Nakuru Nakuru Athletic Club 2,000
MMUST RFC Kakamega City MMUST Grounds 1,000
Strathmore Leos Nairobi Strathmore University Grounds 1,000

2021 Kenya Cup Final Standings

These are the final standings of the Kenya Cup. [3]

2021 Kenya Cup Table
ClubPlayedWonDrawnLostPoints forPoints againstPoints diffBonus PointsPoints
1Kabras Sugar RU10100040181320949
2 KCB CH10901313149164844
3Menengari Oliers SF1061321518428430
4 Strathmore Leos SF1042422718641727
5 Kenya Harlequin 10424219232-13525
6 MMUST 10415151204-53220
7 Nondescripts 10415132180-48-117
8 Impala Saracens 10325144210-66117
9 Mwamba 10136108225-117413
10 Top Fry Nakuru 10208148266-118210
11 Blak Blad 10127111252-14119
Green background (rows 1 to 4) are play-off places and earns a berth in the Semi-Finals of the competition.
Red background (row 11) Relegation to Kenya Nationwide League.


(CH) Champions. (RU) Runners-up. (SF) Losing semi-finalists.
Final Standings — source:

Tiebreakers for teams tied on points: 1) Number of matches won; 2) Difference between points for and against; 3) Total number of points for; 4) Aggregate number of points scored in matches between tied teams; 5) Number of matches won excluding the first match, then the second and so on until the tie is settled

Champions

The previous champions of the Kenya Cup are: [4]

a. ^ This webpage states that Harlequins had also had "Previous Kenya Cup victories: 1955, 1957, 1964, 1988". This is probably incorrect as these are years that Harlequins won the Enterprise Cup.The Kenya Cup was inaugurated in 1970. Before 1970 the competition which was held was called the Nairobi District Championship. However the 1995 victory seems likely as it is included in a list that also shows the Enterprise Cup win that year.

Titles by team

TeamTitlesYears won
Nondescripts RFC 171975, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1997, 1998
Impala RFC 101970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2009
KCB RFC 82005, 2006, 2007, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021
Kenya Harlequin 1995, 1996, 1999, 2003, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012
Mean Machine RFC 31977, 1989, 1990
Nakuru RFC 22013, 2014
Mwamba RFC 11983
Barclays Bank RFC11987
Kabras Sugar32016,2022,2023

Related Research Articles

Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition, consisting of 10 clubs, and is the top division of the English rugby union system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harlequin F.C.</span> English rugby union club, based in Twickenham

Harlequins is a professional rugby union club that plays in Premiership Rugby, the top level of English rugby union. Their home ground is the Twickenham Stoop, located in Twickenham, south-west London.

Philip Thomas Davies is a Welsh former rugby union footballer of the 1980s and 1990s. He is now an international coach, currently serving as director of rugby at Leeds Tykes, whilst running his own sports consultancy company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conor O'Shea</span> Irish rugby union coach and player

Conor O'Shea is an Irish rugby union coach and former player. He was the head coach of the Italy national team from 2016 to 2019. He played as a full back and occasionally at out-half and centre for Ireland, Lansdowne and London Irish. He has also coached London Irish and Harlequins, and held management positions with the English Rugby Football Union and the English Institute of Sport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenya national rugby union team</span>

The Kenya national rugby union team, commonly known as the Simbas, is the country's national team managed by the Kenya Rugby Union. The team plays in red, green, and black jerseys with black or white shorts. The Simbas represent Kenya in the Africa Cup and various other tournaments across the continent. They currently rank 34 in the World Rugby Rankings and fourth in Africa. Kenya is yet to qualify for the Rugby World Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2007 Under 19 Rugby World Championship</span>

The International Rugby Board (IRB) awarded the 2007 Under 19 Rugby World Championship to the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) and the Ulster branch hosted it. The Tournament, which took place in Belfast, Northern Ireland from 4–21 April, was split into two divisions of twelve teams. Division A games took place in Belfast at Belfast Harlequins' Deramore Park, Ulster Rugby's Ravenhill Stadium, and Cooke RFC/Instonians' Shaw's Bridge complex. Division B games were held in Queen's University of Belfast's The Dub complex and Malone RFC's Gibson Park in Belfast, and Bangor RFC's Upritchard Park in Bangor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenya Harlequin F.C.</span> Rugby team

Kenya Harlequin Football Club, is a Kenyan rugby union club that competes in the Kenya Cup, the top level of Kenyan rugby. The club motto "Nunquam Dormio" is Latin, meaning I never sleep.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bamburi Rugby Super Series</span>

The Bamburi Super Series was an East African Rugby union competition with eight teams in total, five teams from Kenya two from Uganda and one from Tanzania (Twigas) that is currently defunct. It is closely based on the Super Rugby competition in the southern hemisphere. Games take place at the RFUEA Ground in Nairobi (Kenya), Friedkin Recreation Centre in Arusha (Tanzania) and the Kyadondo Grounds, Kampala (Uganda). Rhinos have won the most titles with four wins, and are the only team to have defended a title when they beat the Cheetahs 25–5 in the 2010 final.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Homeboyz RFC</span> African rugby club in Nairobi, Kenya

Homeboyz Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club based in Nairobi, Kenya, that competes in the Kenya Cup, Eric Shirley Shield, Enterprise Cup and Mwamba Cup. Formed in 2009, Homeboyz also has a women's team that competes in the Kenya Rugby Football Union women's league every year. Both the men's and women's teams also compete in the Kenya National Sevens Circuit that happens annually. Their main home ground is Jamhuri Park.

The Eric Shirley Shield is a rugby union tournament in the Kenyan domestic league. It was founded in 1962 as a second tier competition to the Nairobi District Championship

KCB Rugby Club is a rugby union team based in Nairobi, Kenya. It was formed in 1989 after the disbanding of Kenya Breweries RFC when their main sponsor, Kenya Breweries, pulled out. That year they joined the Kenya Cup. Their first match was against Impala RFC, whom they beat 96–6. In 1994 the team was relegated to the Eric Shirley Shield, however by 1996 they had regained their position in Kenya's top rugby league. The club now has a 2nd XV team which has performed well, winning the Mwamba Cup, and Eric Shirley Shield several times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enterprise Cup</span>

The Enterprise Cup is an annual rugby union competition in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, though the competition frequently has the appearance of being an all-Kenyan affair as the majority of rugby clubs in the African Great Lakes region are based in this one country and frequently clubs in Tanzania and Uganda are unable to take part due to financial constraints. The original cup was donated by sailors from HMS Enterprise, who had toured British East Africa in 1928. The only years in which the competition has not been played is between 1940–1946 due to World War II and in 1987 because an international rugby competition was held on RFUEA Ground as part of the All Africa Games.

The 2012–13 RFU Championship is the fourth season of the professionalised format of the RFU Championship, the second tier of English domestic rugby union competitions, played between August 2012 and May 2013.

The 2013–14 British and Irish Cup was the fifth season of the annual rugby union competition for second tier, semi-professional clubs from Britain and Ireland. Leinster A were the defending champions having won the 2012–13 Final with a 78th minute penalty by Noel Reid to beat Newcastle Falcons 18–17 at their home ground Kingston Park. There has been four different winners and four different losing finalists of the competition in the first four seasons of its existence.

The 2016–17 Aviva Premiership was the 30th season of the top flight English domestic rugby union competition and the seventh one to be sponsored by Aviva. The reigning champions entering the season were Saracens, who had claimed their third title after defeating Exeter Chiefs in the 2016 final. Bristol Bears had been promoted as champions from the 2015–16 RFU Championship after a seven year absence.

The 2017–18 Aviva Premiership was the 31st season of the top flight English domestic rugby union competition and the eighth and final one to be sponsored by Aviva. The reigning champions entering the season were Exeter Chiefs, who had claimed their first title after defeating Wasps in the 2017 final. London Irish had been promoted as champions from the 2016–17 RFU Championship at the first attempt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018–19 European Rugby Challenge Cup</span> Second-tier rugby union competition

The 2018–19 European Rugby Challenge Cup is the fifth edition of the European Rugby Challenge Cup, an annual second-tier rugby union competition for professional clubs. Including the predecessor competition, the original European Challenge Cup, this is the 23rd edition of European club rugby's second-tier competition. Clubs from five of the nations that participate in the Six Nations Championship, along with club-sides from Romania and Russia, are competing.

The 2018–19 Gallagher Premiership was the 32nd season of the top flight English domestic rugby union competition and the first one to be sponsored by Gallagher. The reigning champions entering the season were Saracens, who had claimed their fourth title after defeating Exeter Chiefs in the 2018 final. Bristol Bears had been promoted as champions from the 2017–18 RFU Championship at the first attempt.

The 2019–20 Premiership Rugby Cup was the 48th season of England's national rugby union cup competition and the second under the new Premiership Rugby Cup format following the disbanding of the Anglo-Welsh Cup at the end of the 2017–18 season due to the withdrawal of the Welsh Pro14 regions. Although there were no stipulations on player selection, the cup was seen by many clubs as a development competition, and games took place during the 2019 Rugby World Cup and during the Six Nations.

The 2021–22 Premiership Rugby Cup is the 49th season of England's national rugby union cup competition and the third under the new Premiership Rugby Cup format following the disbanding of the Anglo-Welsh Cup at the end of the 2017–18 season due to the withdrawal of the Welsh Pro14 regions. Although there are no stipulations on player selection, the cup will be seen by many clubs as a development competition, and games will take place during the Autumn internationals and during the Six Nations.

References

  1. "Kenya Rugby Historical Highlights" (PDF). Kenya RFU. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 February 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  2. "The Kenya Cup". www.kenyacup.co.ke. Retrieved 2019-12-20.
  3. Team, The Kenya Cup. "Resilient KCB keep the Kenya Cup title". www.kenyacup.co.ke. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
  4. "Kenya Cup Roll of Honour" . Retrieved 2018-05-10.
  5. "Kenya Harlequins: An Introduction". Come All Within. Rugby Network. 1 February 2007. Retrieved 21 November 2013.