Erasmus Shalihaxwe
The Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) has announced the final squad that will travel to Uganda for the Rugby Africa Cup, which will run from 8 to 19 July in Kampala.
The tournament brings together the top eight rugby nations on the continent and serves as part of the two-year qualification process for the 2027 Men’s Rugby World Cup, set to be held in Australia from 1 October to 13 November.
Namibia’s squad consists of 28 players, including 17 forwards and 11 full-backs. They will be supported by a 10-member technical and management team.
Countries competing in the tournament are Uganda, Zimbabwe, Algeria, Namibia, Kenya, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, and Morocco.
The Namibian squad includes Haitembu Shikufa, Jason Benade, Otja Auala, Louise van Der Westhuizen, Armand Combrinck, Torsten Van Jaarsveld, Aronos Coetzee, Adriaan Ludick, Oliver Kurz, Tiaan De Klerk, Wian Conradie, Johan Retief, Max Katjijeko, Richard Hardwick, Adriaan Booysen, Prince !Goaseb, Jacques Theron, AJ Keans, Tiaan Swanepoel, Andre Van Der Burg, Le Roux Malan, Danco Burger, Alcino Izaacs, Jurgen Meyer, Cliven Loubser, Dan Van Der Merwe, and Jay Cee Nel.
The management team includes Jacques Burger as director of rugby, Wessel Kotze as team manager, Tanya Green as lead physio, Wilfred Bezuidenhoudt as head doctor, Rohan Kitshoff as forwards coach, David Phillander as backline coach, Sergio De La Harpe as strength and conditioning coach, Jaco Engels as scrum coach, Derral De La Harpe as technical coach, and Devin O’Brien as video analyst.
