He has played in two of the opening three legs of the 2019 Stanbic Bank National Sevens Circuit and has been devastating in every aspect of the word.
Not only has he played a crucial role in steering his club side KCB to the top of the current standings after cup title successes in Kakamega and Kisumu, he has also proven his worth by sweeping all individual accolades on offer at the two tournaments he has featured in. He claimed the top try and points scorers’ awards in addition to the Most Valuable Player awards in both tournaments.
We’re talking about 23-year-old Vincent Onyala Owino, arguably the man of the moment and one of a crop of players alongside the likes of Daniel Taabu and Johnstone Olindi who epitomize the future of Kenyan Rugby, particularly in the shorter version of the game.
His reading of the game, his ability to unlock defenses and leave his defenders for dead as well as his ability apply himself on defense is nothing short of phenomenal.
Meet @OnyalaVincent: The #Stanbic7s Man of the Moment who’s Beena force to reckon with at the #Kakamega7s and #Dala7s.
He’s sweeped the individual accolades in both tournaments as he steered his side @kcbrugby to the top of the standings. pic.twitter.com/J1FwgDdnO2
— Kenya Rugby (@OfficialKRU) August 14, 2019
Onyala may be hitting the headlines now but has been bubbling under for a while. The Ruaraka High School alumnus has literally worked his way through the ranks, taking his first plunge in club rugby at the Catholic University before making the move to current club side KCB where he has continued to grow in stature after managing to overcome a series of niggling injuries that had blighted him in 2017. He was part of the 23-man KCB squad that lifted the 2019 Kenya Cup title.
His first Coach was Simon Jawichre back in 2007 at the then KCB age grade and development side.
He was also part of the Kenya U19s who finished third at the Rugby Africa U19 Championship held in Harare, Zimbabwe in 2015 and only made his Kenya Sevens debut at the second leg of the 2018/19 HSBC Sevens World Series in Cape Town where he scored four tries en route to a stellar maiden season.
Onyala gives back to the game in a big way, serving as a Coach at the Shamas Rugby Foundation, he is the Chairman of the Northern Suburbs Cubs and is a certified Level One match official. He is an all-round rugby man.
He is destined for bigger and better things. The sky is definitely the limit for the flyer from KCB RC.
