Staff Reporter
Windhoek
If Namibia is to make a serious impact at next year’s African Nations Championship (CHAN), government and the private sector will need to collectively throw their weight behind the Namibia Football Association (NFA) and make sure the Brave Warriors are well equipped for Kenya 2018.
Kenya is scheduled to host the 2018 CHAN tournament from 11 January to 2 February. It will be the 5th edition of the tournament, which is a biennial tournament organised by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) exclusively featuring locally based African players.
Namibia’s official opposition, the DTA of Namibia, in a statement signed by secretary for sports and culture, John Martin, yesterday congratulated Brave Warriors mentor Ricardo Mannetti and his charges.
While praising Mannetti for steering Namibia to the first CHAN qualification, DTA said it was high time the private sector came on board and invested in the senior national team – financially, technically and materially.
“The achievements of coach Mannetti and the boys under these most challenging circumstances, of which we are all aware, cannot be for nothing. The Brave Warriors have done their part, the burden now shifts to the private business community and the NFA to put the team in the best possible position to achieve further success and continue to unify the nation. A functioning league to maintain fitness levels and ensuring that our players are match-ready is non-negotiable in light of our qualification for CHAN. Let us bond together – as the NFA, as the private business sector, as the Ministry of Sport, Youth and National Service, as Brave Warriors supporters – and ensure that the Brave Warriors are placed in the best possible position to win CHAN 2018,” appealed DTA.
DTA continued: “The fact that Mannetti and his team have done this without a competitive functioning league is a testament to the undeniable talent and rich potential within the Namibian football fraternity. It is no easy task to go up against players who play competitive football weekly when the Namibian Premier League (NPL) has been defunct for far too long now”
Lastly, the DTA also congratulated Julius ‘Blue Machine’ Indongo for representing Namibia in the super lightweight unification fight over the weekend, where he lost via a 3rd round KO to America’s Terence Crawford.
“We would like to congratulate Indongo for once again shining light on boxing in Namibia. We would like to remind ‘Blue Machine’ that the defeat to Crawford should be used as an opportunity to learn from and come back stronger to reclaim his titles.”