DECEMBER 2000 SPORT HEADLINES

Tuesday, January 23, 2001 - Web posted at 9:52:31 AM GMT

Rugby takes off in Katutura

THE Katutura Rugby Club on Saturday elected its first-ever executive committee that will take the club through the second division ranks of the Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) this season.

The new chairman of the club, which aims to target black players whose participation in the sport was limited in Katutura previously, is Gotlieb Mundjanima.

His deputy is former national football side (Brave Warriors) coach, Seth Boois, with Erenst Hoebeb having been entrusted with the treasurer's position.

The public relations officer (PRO) portfolio is to be filled by Gideon Eiseb, himself a former rugby player at school level with both the junior and senior sides at Ella du Plessis High School during his educational obligations there.

Simeon Geiseb is the new secretary and will also manage all the administrative affairs of the club.

The meeting set Wednesday January 31 as the date for registering new players that would like to join the club, Eiseb told Nampa.

The club so far has 24 registered players, and more registrations are expected to roll in on Wednesday, according to Eiseb, who has already observed the level of interest of especially younger individuals in the sport.

At the moment, the club still has no home venue for their training sessions that are due to start soon.

In this regard, Eiseb gave the assurance that a venue would not be a major stumbling block for them to carry out their mission of giving a chance to black people in Katutura to play rugby.

A coach has already been identified who will take the side to the required heights, but his appointment has not yet been confirmed.

Eiseb further stated that the reason why they would prefer to firstly square up with their counterparts in the second division, is because the first division was more competitive and will put a great amount of pressure on the players, some of whom might not have played rugby before.

The second division mostly consists of second or B-sides of those teams that play in the first division.

The Namibia Rugby Referees' Association has also confirmed their willingness to assist by providing the new club with basic rules and regulations of the game during their practice sessions.

This gesture from the men in black (referees), has been welcomed wholeheartedly by the club, Eiseb said.

He said they also discussed the sponsorship issue, and herewith appeal to willing companies to come forward and support their endeavours.

Although the club so far has no money in its kitty, Eiseb was looking forward to garner financial support in the near future, saying that it was only a matter of time.

The PRO said the idea of establishing a rugby club in Katutura came during the 1999 Rugby World Cup in Wales, after the Namibian national side lost in the qualifying rounds.

They believe the effort will eventually result in some players being selected for the national side, or allow them to play professional rugby if they so wish."

"But, the primary aspect is that we need some integration in the sport that is currently mostly played by white people in Namibia.

It will be unfair if we just remain idle and watch from the sidelines how our national side gives one bad performance after another.

It will be of great help then, if we take the right people that can do the right job for the country, and that is through putting the willing youngsters from Katutura in a position that they can show their talent and be selected for the national side," he said.

- Nampa

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