By Bonafce Mulyungi

Kenya Shujaa’s hopes of securing promotion to Division One of the HSBC SVNS came to a heartbreaking end after the USA staged a stunning second-half comeback to beat Fiji 17-14 in Bordeaux.

Shujaa had done their part earlier in the day, defeating Uruguay 26-7 in the 11th-place playoff to keep their qualification hopes alive. However, their fate rested on Fiji overcoming the Americans in the final decisive match.

Kenya arrived in Bordeaux ranked eighth overall after finishing seventh in Hong Kong and eighth in Valladolid. Their campaign got off to a difficult start as they finished bottom of Pool A following defeats to Fiji (31-12), eventual champions South Africa (26-5) and Great Britain (14-5).

A narrow 7-5 loss to Germany in the ninth-place semifinal further complicated their qualification hopes, leaving them dependent on other results, even as South Africa’s victory over Great Britain provided a lifeline.

Against Uruguay, Kenya produced a spirited display. Vincent Onyala opened the scoring after combining with Kevin Wekesa and Festus Shiasi before Uruguay’s Francisco Landauer replied to leave the scores level at 7-7 at halftime.

The second half belonged to Shujaa. John Okoth crossed for his first try of the Bordeaux leg before David Nyanginge added another as Kenya stretched their lead. Substitute Brian Tanga then sealed the victory with the fourth try as Shujaa ran out convincing 26-7 winners.

The result meant Kenya’s hopes were placed firmly in Fiji’s hands.

The Fijians appeared to be doing exactly what Kenya needed. Fiji dominated the opening half and raced into a 14-0 lead at the break, putting Shujaa on the verge of qualification to Division One.

But the Americans had other ideas.

USA produced a spirited second-half comeback, overturning the deficit with 17 unanswered points to claim a dramatic 17-14 victory.

The result not only secured qualification for the Americans but also extinguished Kenya’s hopes of joining the eight-team Division One competition next season.