2016-11-17Staff Report 2 Windhoek Whilst Namibian football has come to a virtual standstill with no league activities in sight, following the Namibian Premier League (NPL)’s dismal failure to attract potential sponsors, relegated Julinho Sporting FC is hard at work preparing for rainy days. The Rundu-based Portuguese-owned club lost their short-lived premiership status at the end of the 2015/2016 campaign, after an intensive battle to stave off the dreaded relegation axe that had been hovering over the ambitious club for most of last season. Club owner and business mogul Nelson ‘the Bomber’ Louis, a former Ramblers FC sharpshooter, has since embarked upon an aggressive rebuilding process by recruiting some new blood with the aim of making an rapid return to the country’s elite football league. Julinho Sporting has been hard at work playing exhibition matches against local teams and opponents from surrounding areas in an effort to keep fit and to be match-ready, should the league start. Their most recent assignment came in the shape of a friendly match against Angolan opponents Benfica Calai FC last Sunday. The visitors thrashed their hosts by scoring six unanswered goals in a one-sided encounter on the uneven gravel field in Calai, southern Angola – a mere eight kilometres beyond the Kavango River that separates Namibia and Angola. Sporting’s leading striker Robinho netted a well-taken brace with the impressive Villa also registering his name on the scoresheet in the free-scoring entertaining clash that attracted a large crowd of local residents. “Nothing is impossible in football, with the current squad we’ve assembled we’re very confident that this team could bounce back and reclaim its rightful place amongst the country’s elite football clubs,” said a confident and hopeful Louis. 2016-11-17Staff Report 2
