Namibia’s Welwitschias assistant coach Chrysander Botha has refused to read too much into the back-to-back defeats against South African outfit Pumas, saying the two matches were primarily aimed at providing high-level exposure to the team’s youngsters ahead of major competitions.
The country’s Windhoek Draught Welwitschias last week Wednesday lost 0-43 to the Pumas in the first match of their two-match Airlink Cup series, before
going down 8-81 on Saturday at Windhoek’s Hage Geingob stadium.
Despite the two heavy defeats, coach Botha has rather chosen to place special emphasis on the positives and the many developmental aspects that came with the games, saying the ultimate objective was to test the team’s young and inexperienced players as well as giving them time against highly-competitive opponents.
“The aim was to build a strong team for the upcoming Mzanzi Challenge and our boys finally got a chance to play against one of the best teams, who are Currie Cup champions. It was vital exposure for our young boys and also for us as the coaching team. We equally got an opportunity to see where our weaknesses are and where we
need to improve. So, for the two weeks or so, we will continue with preparations and training ahead of the Mzanzi Challenge,” Botha, a former Welwitschias full-back himself, shared with the media after Saturday’s match.
“These two games gave us a proper direction as to where we want to go as a team and what we expect from our players. So, going forward, we will come up with an appropriate plan for the players, as we also have to trim down the squad to a much smaller number ahead of the next competition. We want to make an impact in Mzanzi Challenge; therefore, we will go back to the drawing board and plan.”
The Mzanzi Challenge, slated for 25 March, is aimed at further preparing Namibia for this year’s World Cup in France. The Welwitschias will face the Border Bulldogs in South Africa for their Mzanzi Challenge opening clash.
Thereafter, Namibia will be participating in their seventh successive Rugby World Cup tournament, where they will kick off their World Cup campaign against Italy in Saint-Étienne on 9 September, before playing three-time Webb Ellis Cup winners New Zealand in Toulouse six days later.
Next up for Namibia is a match against hosts France in Marseille on 21 September. They will bring their Pool A campaign to a close against Uruguay in Lyon on 27 September.
– ohembapu@nepc.com.na