Capricorn Group yesterday renewed its partnership with Cricket Namibia and extended its sponsorship of women’s cricket by a further N$1.2 million over the next two years.
Marlize Horn of Capricorn Group said that through the agreement they will continue as naming partner to the national women’s team, the Capricorn Eagles, as well as the national u19 team, girls cricket festivals and the girls schools league until May 2028.
“Over the past five years, the Capricorn Eagles brand has become a recognised symbol of excellence, resilience and growth in women’s cricket, both here in Namibia and on the international stage. That progress reflects the dedication of the players, coaches and administrators, but it also shows what becomes possible when talent is matches with consistent support,” she said.
“At Capricorn Group we believe sport has the power to unlock potential, inspire ambition, and create opportunities that extend far beyond the field of play. Our continued partnership with Cricket Namibia is therefore not only an investment in the Capricorn Eagles, but in the broader advancement of women and girls cricket in Namibia,” added.
“Since 2021 we have seen the team grow in confidence, visibility and competitiveness, demonstrating what is possible when talent is matched with sustained support. We are proud to continue backing these remarkable athletes and to help build a stronger pathway for the next generation of girls in cricket,” she said.
Lotter appointed Capricorn Eagles coach
At the same occasion Gerhard Lotter was announced as the new head coach for the Capricorn Eagles, in place of Francois van der Merwe who has stepped down from the role after about five years.
Growing up in Windhoek, Lotter excelled as a sportsman in his own right and achieved a remarkable feat by representing Namibia at junior level in three different sport codes – rugby, cricket and hockey.
He has been a member of the Capricorn Eagles coaching staff for the past five years and said it was a great honour for him.
“I’m overwhelmed and Im very grateful for the opportunity. We are in a new phase for women’s cricket and we’ve got the quadrangular tournament coming up, so we are already hard at work for that,” he said.
“Working under Francois as his assistant coach was an honour for me and I learnt a lot from him and women’s cricket as well. I’ve been working with him for five years and was appointed full time a year ago so working under him was very interesting for me,” he added.
“Now we are heading into a quadrangular tournament and we are about to appoint an assistant coach in the next few weeks as well. We will play against against Tanzania, Uganda and Hong Kong at the FNB Namibia Cricket Ground from 20 to 30 July,” he said.
Lotter said they have several matches coming up and hope to improve their world ranking.
“For the year ahead we will play against teams like Uganda, Tanzania, Hong Kong, and hopefully USA, and then we are working towards a December tour to play against UAE, Nepal and PNG so hopefully that will help us to move up from our current world ranking of 18 to at leat 16. Then next year we’ve got the World Cup Qualifiers, and we are building up to the African qualifiers that will lead up to the global qualifiers,” he said.
