Otniel Hembapu
Windhoek – National rugby second stringers, Windhoek Draught Welwitschias, are still without a victory in the 2018 SuperSport Rugby Challenge and will tomorrow be expected to put up a pumped-up performance against visiting South African outfit Xerox Golden Lions XV at the Hage Geingob Stadium in Windhoek.
The Namibian lads have so far lost two of their opening matches in this year’s competition, losing the opening game 7-39 against Valke, while their second outing ended in a 20-73 defeat at the hands of the Vodacom Blue Bulls.
It will not be an easy assignment for the Welwitschias against the wounded Lions, who lost 26-35 to iCOLLEGE Pumas in last weekend’s action and will tomorrow therefore be expected to try and avenge that defeat on the Namibians.
It should be an exciting battle where both teams will be out trying to get their campaigns back on track with possible victories.
The Welwitschias, who are drawn in the Northern group of the competition alongside Blue Bulls, Golden Lions, Pumas and Valke, are currently sitting last on the Northern Pool log table with no point while Pumas are currently topping the group with 8 points from two matches played so far.
Namibia endured a tough ride during last year’s edition, with saw the Welwitschias winning only one match from their eight outings in total and will thus this year be expected to deliver a much improved performance while handing various youngsters in the team an opportunity to gain much-needed exposure.
The SuperSport Rugby Challenge is the secondary domestic rugby union competition in South Africa and the long-term successor of the Vodacom Cup competition. The competition is organised by the South African Rugby Union (SARU) and features all fourteen South African provincial unions plus the Welwitschias.
For this year, the format of the tournament will again see five teams battle it out in each of the North, South and Central pools, with all 14 unions and Namibia taking part in another exciting edition. Entrance fee to tomorrow’s match is N$50 for adults and N$10 for children and tickets are available at the gates.