NAIROBI, Sept. 8 (Xinhua) -- Kenyan retired star Innocent Simiyu was on Tuesday reappointed as the head coach of Kenya's rugby sevens side.
Simiyu takes over from New Zealand national Paul Feeney who left the post in April citing concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kenya Rugby Union (KRU) boss Oduor Gangla said in a statement issued in Nairobi that Simiyu will take over the job on a two-year contract.
The re-appointment of Simiyu brought an end to speculation over who would take over the team that has struggled in the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series since he left.
Last week, fellow former international and KCB Rugby Football Club head coach Dennis Mwanja was heavily tipped to succeed Feeney after it was reported that the majority of the KRU Board had settled on the man who led his side to the domestic title.
Simiyu's first tenure courted controversy when the national team commonly known as 'Shujaa' refused to wear a kit emblazoned with their sponsors Brand Kenya in the Paris leg of the World Series in 2018.
The boycott triggered by bonus payments saw the Union clamp down hard on the dissenting players and coaches which led to the dismissal of Simiyu, a former national captain of the sevens and 15s formats of the game.
But having performed admirably since replacing Benjamin Ayimba, his former coach at Shujaa, at the helm on Oct. 17, 2016, KRU has once again turned to the retired ace to kick-start the rebuilding process for the team. Enditem
