BY ENOCK MUCHINJO IN KAMPALA, UGANDA
Zimbabwe rugby coach Piet Benade has acknowledged that Namibia are “battle-hardened” following their participation at the World Cup late last year, but is confident his team will be competitive against them on Wednesday.
The two Southern African giants clash in what promises to be a tantalising semi-final showdown of the Africa Cup here on Wednesday afternoon, with the defending champions Namibia starting as favourites against the Sables.
Namibia have dominantly secured Africa’s only qualification ticket to the World Cup since 1999.
Although they are yet to win a single match in seven tournament appearances at the World Cup – with the 2023 edition being one of their worst – Zimbabwe’s coach believes the Welwitschias still pose massive threat in Africa due to their exposure against the best teams on the planet.
“Only months ago they were playing the likes of the All Blacks and France in a World Cup, so they are well prepared and battle-hardened at this level,” Benade told SportsCast on Monday evening.
“So it will be a big job to match their intensity and accuracy at Test level. However, we are confident we can put on a good show against our regional rivals and mount a tough fight for a spot in the final.”
Zimbabwe edged tournament host Uganda 22-20 on Saturday in the quarter-finals after allowing the Cranes to almost steal an incredible comeback win. The Zimbabweans had earlier silenced the home crowd with a stunning first-half display to lead 22-0 at the break.
Instead of being disheartened by the second-half capitulation, Benade chose to see the positives in how his team secured the victory through the first-half dominance of the Cranes.
“It was a great start, and we needed it playing with a strong wind behind us,” he said.
“Building up a lead was always going to be important, as we knew the second-half field position would come less easily. Handling momentum shifts better is key for the second match (against Namibia).”
The 42-year-old tactician praised his team’s execution against the Ugandans.
“We performed extremely well and showed what we are capable of as a group, even though this was our first tough test against a very strong and motivated Ugandan side. Our big players showed their quality. We also had some locally-based boys putting up their hands, which was great to see, that the effort and investment we have put in back home in the locals have put us in a good space going forward.”
Kenya and Algeria will meet in the other semi-final earlier on Wednesday for a place in Sunday’s final.
