A gay rugby player who is facing deportation to Kenya, where he says he will be persecuted because of his sexuality, has been granted bail allowing him to leave the immigration centre where he was being held. Kenneth Macharia, who plays for Bristol Bisons, a gay and inclusive rugby club, told of his relief at being allowed out of the immigration centre where he had been held for almost two weeks, which he likened to a prison.. The 38-year-old, who has lived in the UK for nearly a decade, was granted bail on Wednesday at Hatton Cross tribunal hearing centre in Middlesex. He still faces the prospect of deportation. Nearly 100,000 people have signed a petition calling on the Home Office to halt his removal.