Big welcome for Warriors

THE Brave Warriors will be the centre of attention when they touch down at the Hosea Kutako International Airport this morning.

The relatively young and inexperienced team turned into overnight heroes when they booked a place in the 2008 African Nations Cup after defeating Ethiopia 3-2 in their last qualifying fixture played in Addis Ababa on Saturday. The Namibia Football Association (NFA) yesterday announced that all systems are in place to give the Warriors a heroes’ welcome, as they ensured Namibia’s second qualification for the biennial tournament after their last entry in 1998.Prime Minister Nahas Angula was the first to congratulate the team, saying that now they need to train more and be consistent.”They did a very good job.They need to train, be consistent and be focused now.I congratulate the coach ( Ben Bamfuchile) for a great job.They now need to be fit because it is a key to success.I am really proud of them,” he said.The winning goal was scored by substitute Muna Katupose, who has relatively little experience on international level, while Rudolph Bester was the main hitman for the side, scoring twice.The side went to the match after spending only two weeks in a training camp due to financial problems, while they could also not play any warm-up matches to gauge their levels of match fitness.NFA acting Secretary General Barry Rukoro said it was once again a monumental achievement for Namibia, which is regarded as a non-entity in African football.”Namibia has an extra-small population and an extra-small budget for the national teams, this shows that the players and the entire technical staff were committed to the cause.This is really great and I am very happy for the coach and the players who have worked so hard to achieve this.This is indeed for the whole country and everyone should be proud of the team,” he said.None of the players who played against Ethiopia have ever played at the African Nations Cup and come January next year, competition will hot up as most players will want to be considered for selection.The team which beat Ethiopia at the weekend only had seven professional players, with the rest being local players in a group of 18.Boxing promoter and trainer Nestor Tobias, who is also an ardent football supporter, said Namibia had shown that they can be a force in the game.”Judging from the group and how close it was, I think we achieved a remarkable feat.These men truly did a great job for the country and they fought as warriors,” he said.If considered, current Santos professional player Robert Nauseb will become the first Namibian player ever to play in two Nations Cup finals.He did duty for the country during the 1998 tournament.Nauseb did not share in the victory in Ethiopia due to suspension.He had two yellow cards in the previous qualifiers.Nauseb yesterday told The Namibian Sport from Cape Town that it would be an honour for him to represent the country at the competition if selected.”I am ready to do battle for my country anytime.I have never let my country down and I think I will be ready for that tournament if selected.But most importantly, I am very excited because of the achievement by the boys at the weekend.I am really over the moon and I wish to congratulate them all, especially the coach and his technical staff.”Nauseb, who was the captain until the recent match, will be 34 years old next January and would be the oldest player in the side if chosen to play at the finals.He suggested that the NFA should organise more friendly matches to get the players used to tough international conditions.”We need to play more matches against top nations such as Ivory Coast, Ghana, Egypt and so on to become accustomed to the tough opposition,” he said.Nauseb, who still has a contract with the Premier Soccer League (PSL) side, said Namibia also needs to put emphasis on development to ensure continuity.”I think when some of us are gone, there should be players who are coming through the ranks to take over.So, I think development of the game from the young age needs a lot of attention from the NFA,” he said.Nauseb also dismissed recent reports that he retired from international football, saying it was not true and that he still has at least five years of football left in him.Namibia’s former stars who competed at the 98 finals held in Burkina Faso will be watching from the sidelines this time, as most have since retired.Players such as Ricardo Mannetti, Mohamed Ouseb, Ronnie Kanalelo (assistant coach), Bimbo Tjihero, Orlando Haraseb, Phillip Gariseb, China Uutoni, Tiger Goagoseb, the late Silvanus Nyambari, Gerros Witbeen and Eliphas Shivute no longer play the game.The mentor at the time was current chief of Namibian sport Rusten Mogane and German coach Peter Ueberjahn.The Namibia Football Association (NFA) yesterday announced that all systems are in place to give the Warriors a heroes’ welcome, as they ensured Namibia’s second qualification for the biennial tournament after their last entry in 1998.Prime Minister Nahas Angula was the first to congratulate the team, saying that now they need to train more and be consistent.”They did a very good job.They need to train, be consistent and be focused now.I congratulate the coach ( Ben Bamfuchile) for a great job.They now need to be fit because it is a key to success.I am really proud of them,” he said.The winning goal was scored by substitute Muna Katupose, who has relatively little experience on international level, while Rudolph Bester was the main hitman for the side, scoring twice.The side went to the match after spending only two weeks in a training camp due to financial problems, while they could also not play any warm-up matches to gauge their levels of match fitness.NFA acting Secretary General Barry Rukoro said it was once again a monumental achievement for Namibia, which is regarded as a non-entity in African football.”Namibia has an extra-small population and an extra-small budget for the national teams, this shows that the players and the entire technical staff were committed to the cause.This is really great and I am very happy for the coach and the players who have worked so hard to achieve this.This is indeed for the whole country and everyone should be proud of the team,” he said.None of the players who played against Ethiopia have ever played at the African Nations Cup and come January next year, competition will hot up as most players will want to be considered for selection.The team which beat Ethiopia at the weekend only had seven professional players, with the rest being local players in a group of 18.Boxing promoter and trainer Nestor Tobias, who is also an ardent football supporter, said Namibia had shown that they can be a force in the game.”Judging from the group and how close it was, I think we achieved a remarkable feat.These men truly did a great job for the country and they fought as warriors,” he said.If considered, current Santos professional player Robert Nauseb will become the first Namibian player ever to play in two Nations Cup finals.He did duty for the country during the 1998 tournament.Nauseb did not share in the victory in Ethiopia due to suspension.He had two yellow cards in the previous qualifiers.Nauseb yesterday told The Namibian Sport from Cape Town that it would be an honour for him to represent the country at the competition if selected.”I am ready to do battle for my country anytime.I have never let my country down and I think I will be ready for that tournament if selected.But most importantly, I am very excited because of the achievement by the boys at the weekend.I am really over the moon and I wish to congratulate them all, especially the coach and his technical staff.”Nauseb, who was the captain until the recent match, will be 34 years old next January and would be the oldest player in the side if chosen to play at the finals.He suggested that the NFA should organise more friendly matches to get the players used to tough international conditions.”We need to play more matches against top nations such as Ivory Coast, Ghana, Egypt and so on to become accustomed to the tough opposition,” he said.Nauseb, who still has a contract with the Premier Soccer League (PSL) side, said Namibia also needs to put emphasis on development to ensure continuity.”I think when some of us are gone, there should be players who are coming through the ranks to take over.So, I think development of the game from the young age needs a lot of attention from the NFA,” he said.Nauseb also dismissed recent reports that he retired from international football, saying it was not true and that he still has at least five years of football left in him.Namibia’s former stars who competed at the 98 finals held in Burkina Faso will be watching from the sidelines this time, as most have since retired.Players such as Ricardo Mannetti, Mohamed Ouseb, Ronnie Kanalelo (assistant coach), Bimbo Tjihero, Orlando Haraseb, Phillip Gariseb, China Uutoni, Tiger Goagoseb, the late Silvanus Nyambari, Gerros Witbeen and Eliphas Shivute no longer play the game.The mentor at the time was current chief of Namibian sport Rusten Mogane and German coach Peter Ueberjahn.