Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) league defending champions Wanderers made a huge statement this weekend, of their intentions to retain the title they won last year, after registering a crushing 82-0 defeat of coastal outfit Dolphins.

“I think it’s every team’s goal to aim for the title, and we are no exception. Saturday’s results are a statement, and that’s what we want to do with each and every team we play. Just like Saturday, heading forward, we hope to put up a great performance,” said Darryl de la Harpe, Wanderers head coach.

The win keeps the defending champions on top of the log standings with 17 points, four ahead of Kudus, who are placed second with 13 points.

The coach said the win has made a huge impact on the team going forward. “Winning by a huge margin like that is a huge morale booster for the team, players, and staff. This gives us the opportunity to approach our next opponents with confidence,” he said.

In other results over the weekend, Grootfontein defeated Reho Falcon 39-20, while Rehoboth stunned Western Suburbs with a 42-28 victory. 

United, on the other hand, defeated Kudus by a narrow 31-30 scoreline.

Jood Opperman of Western Suburbs blamed their defeat on players not sticking to the game plan. “I think our guys were too reluctant during the first half, but we made a couple of technical and tactical changes, but it was too late,” he said.

“Heading forward, we will have a lot of boardroom meetings to analyse our mistakes from the match and see where we need to fix. I also think we had a string of chances, but we failed to convert them into points, which cost us the game,” he said.

-mkambukwe@nepc.com.na