Brave Lionesses stop Argentina to win HSBC Challenger Series

Kenya’s Lionesses battled their way to the HSBC Challenger Series title beating Argentina 17-12 in the final at the Athlone Stadium, Sunday evening.

To get to the final Kenya shrugged off hosts South Africa 19-15 in the semi, Noami  Amuguni, Sharon Auma and Freshia Oduor, starring with a try a piece.

The win cemented Kenya’s fine run in the competition after shrugging off tough opponents in the group. They beat Poland and Samoa on Saturday to finish top of Group D.

They secured a spot in the semifinals after a dominant 29-7 win over Poland, finishing unbeaten in Pool D.

Earlier on, the Dennis Mwanja coached team had beaten Samoa 20-5, showing their intention to advance from the beginning.

Against Poland, Kenya struck first in the opening minutes, with Freshia Oduor scoring a try which was however not successfully converted, to give the Lionesses a 5-0 lead.

Oliwia Krysiak crossed the try line, and Julia Druzgała added the conversion to put them ahead 7-5, in what was a quick response from Poland.

Stella Wafula restored Kenya’s lead, scoring a try just before halftime to make it 10-7, as it also went unconverted. By the end of the first half, Poland were struggling match Kenya’s zest and zeal.