Kenya’s record try scorer Collins Injera receiving the Player of the tournament award in Singapore.PHOTO/World Rugby.
NAIROBI, April 18 – Kenya’s all-time leading try scorer Collins Injera was named the eighth HSBC player of the final after his two tries helped Shujaa to a 30-7 triumph over defending champions Fiji at the eighth round of the Rugby Sevens World Series in Sunday’s Singapore 7s Cup final.
Injera collected the award after he helped his side to a historic first-ever Cup final, having earlier booked his side’s place in the final with a drop goal penalty.
With their semi final against Argentina due to go into extra time, Injera stepped up to slot the penalty with the last play of the match before going on to impress in the final.
It was a memorable occasion for the vice captain and Kenya, having never won a Cup before on the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series since their inaugural in 1999.
“Coming to this final we knew we had to believe, and go out there and play, and play hard ball. The guys did and we came out with a win,” an ecstatic Injera said.
“It was frustrating not being able to get on the scoreboard, but coming to this stage you have to play as a team, and the tries eventually came and the points came. I am happy with what we were able to achieve as a team and it came out right. It means a lot, to get one over on Fiji, especially with that amount of points, it means a lot,” he added.
The tries were his 224th and 225th career tries, leaving him just five short of Santiago Gomez Cora’s record, and six from beating it.
Having famously signed the TV camera when scoring his 200th in London last year, many are predicting he could break the record at Twickenham in May.
Kenya’s all-time leading try scorer Collins Injera celebrating after scoring a try in the final against titans and champions Fiji in the Singapore final.PHOTO/World Rugby
His elder brother Humphrey Kayange added: “Amazing, we came into the match with a few things to get right, and we got them right. Credit to the team for what they put in.”
“What a way to win, Fiji have been a tough side all season and coming into the game we fancied our chances, we knew it would be tough, but we’re glad we got the win in the end,” the veteran stated.
The triumphant team will return Tuesday after collecting 32 points from Hong Kong and Singapore with President Uhuru Kenyatta expected to receive the team that sits seventh in the log on 85 points.
