Maurice Kambukwe
Welwitschias head coach Allister Coetzee says more game time for players will be key in achieving their objectives at this Africa Cup in July, which will also serve as the last qualifying round for the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
Namibia will face Burkina Faso and potentially Ivory Coast at the African Cup that will be hosted in France, and Coetzee will need to win the continental cup if he is to help the Welwitschias qualify for the next World Cup.
Speaking to rugbyworld.com, the former Springbok coach admitted that it will not be an easy task to win the Africa Cup but said with sufficient game time and proper coordination, Namibia stands a great chance to win the cup and qualify for the 2023 World Cup.
“Namibia has got so many talented players, but obviously they lack a high-performance mentality in their own country at the moment. They don’t take part in a strong club competition, they don’t participate in their neighbouring country’s Currie Cup or the lower division, for example. But they have guys who are really passionate about the game and people that need a bit of direction in how they take what they have and on a short timeline produce a bit of quality. I’m really happy to be able to contribute in a small way,” said Coetzee.
“Ahead of the Africa Cup, I plan to have a three-week camp down in South Africa, at the Stellenbosch Academy of Sport, to get together with the best possible team. That is what I’m busy with at the moment. The boys played in November, against Zimbabwe and Kenya, so we have a good idea of what happened there and they won both of those games. That’s my big aim, to see them qualified, to represent the country and add to the squad that played in November and even strengthen that.”
“My job at the moment is to make sure that they understand the way we want to play, their strengths or weaknesses, just by internet Zoom meetings and (passing on) the policies of the way you want to attack and how we want to improve, and just to stay in touch with them. The biggest and the most important thing is to make sure that they are well conditioned once they join us.
“We have also planned three games prior to the tournament. So, in Cape Town, we are hoping to play Maties – Stellenbosch University. We step it up against Western Province and then I just need to finalise the last match, possibly against an Italy A side and whether that’s going to be in Italy or in South Africa needs to be decided,” shared the veteran gaffer.
-mkambukwe@nepc.com.na
-Adapted from rugbyworld.com