Erasmus Shalihaxwe
The national rugby team, the Welwitchias, began their Rugby Africa Cup campaign with a 55–17 win over Senegal on Tuesday in Kampala, Uganda.
Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) director Jacques Burger described the match as a tough challenge, saying that playing against Senegal was never going to be easy, but the game was a good test for the players.
“For us it was like a quarter-final. We want it like that, and we want to be better in the next game. Going into the Algeria game, we will definitely work on a lot of things… Basically just cut the errors out, because today we made a lot of mistakes and put ourselves under pressure in situations where we should have been attacking and putting pressure on them, but we just let them off the hook,” said Burger.
Burger also highlighted the positives from the match, particularly the introduction of new players in the second half.
“We didn’t have much energy; it was a hot day after we arrived yesterday afternoon, and we didn’t get much sleep. But I am proud of the boys… We got the win; that is all we wanted, and we’ll make sure we improve and be ready for the next game,” he said.
Rugby player Prince !Goaseb said the team struggled in the first half, partly due to the weather, but managed to secure a good win.
“The boys picked up pace in the second half, and we managed to get a win. The squad is full of positives; the boys are getting along well in the squad, and we are just going back to the drawing board next week to see how we can best prepare for Algeria,” he said.
NRU president Petrie Theron congratulated the team and urged them to focus on qualifying for the 2027 Rugby World Cup.
“Well done guys, great start to the tournament… it is good to feel the heat out there and get used to that humidity weather. Well done for pulling it through, great second half and keep on fighting guys and get us qualify for the World Cup,” said Theron.
The winner of the Rugby Africa Cup will qualify for the 2027 Rugby World Cup and represent the continent alongside South Africa.
