Namibia recorded their first victory at the Junior Rugby World Trophy in Chile when they beat the Cook Islands 25-14 at the Estadio San Carlos on Wednesday.
According to the International Rugby Board’s website (www.irb.com), Namibia took control of the match early on through a dominant forward display to run out convincing winners and book a place in Sunday’s fifth place play off. The Cook Islands took a 3-0 lead through a penalty by flyhalf Roney Maui, but Namibia struck back through a fine try by centre Shaun Kaizemi that he converted himself.Kaizemi added a penalty, but with time running out in the half, the Cooks Islands battered the Namibia line and were rewarded with a try by prop Alex Woonton to reduce the deficit to 10-8.In the fourth minute of injury time, Namibia dealt a significant blow as hooker Theo Coetzee crashed over to secure his side a welcome 15-8 buffer at half time.In a gripping match of high quality, the Santiago crowd were treated to a superb second-half display of rugby during which the Cook Islands threw everything at their Namibian counterparts in a concerted attempt to regain the lead.However, it was the superb tactical kicking of the Namibian back three that kept the Cooks Islands at bay and Namibia stretched their lead further via a breathtaking 55-metre drop goal that put Namibia 18-11 in the lead.The Cooks Islands came back strongly and dominated the middle section of the half and reduced the deficit to only four points after two more penalties by Maui.With time running out, Namibia capitalised on an error by the Cooks and closed out the match through replacement Cedric Haraseb’s try six minutes from time.Kaizemi added the icing to the cake with a superbly struck conversion to make the final score 25-14.Namibia will now meet Korea in the fifth place play off on Sunday at the Stade Francais Club, while the Cook Islands will meet Jamaica in the seventh place playoff on the same day.Namibian winger Chrysander Botha said their defensive effort laid the platform for their victory: “I really feel proud to be a part of this team and we eventually won thanks to a fine defensive effort.We can now concentrate on our next match and would like to sign off with a win.”Namibian captain Thomasau Forbes also praised their defensive effort: “We produced some great tackling today, which was the key to the win.We played considerably better than the first two matches and stuck at it – our defence made the difference.”Namibia will now play Korea in the fifth place play-off on Sunday, after Korea beat Jamaica 55-17 on Wednesday.In another Pool A match on Wednesday, Chile beat Romania to book their place in Sunday’s final.They will play the Pool B winners, Uruguay, who beat Georgia 20-16.www.namibiasport.com.naThe Cook Islands took a 3-0 lead through a penalty by flyhalf Roney Maui, but Namibia struck back through a fine try by centre Shaun Kaizemi that he converted himself.Kaizemi added a penalty, but with time running out in the half, the Cooks Islands battered the Namibia line and were rewarded with a try by prop Alex Woonton to reduce the deficit to 10-8.In the fourth minute of injury time, Namibia dealt a significant blow as hooker Theo Coetzee crashed over to secure his side a welcome 15-8 buffer at half time.In a gripping match of high quality, the Santiago crowd were treated to a superb second-half display of rugby during which the Cook Islands threw everything at their Namibian counterparts in a concerted attempt to regain the lead.However, it was the superb tactical kicking of the Namibian back three that kept the Cooks Islands at bay and Namibia stretched their lead further via a breathtaking 55-metre drop goal that put Namibia 18-11 in the lead.The Cooks Islands came back strongly and dominated the middle section of the half and reduced the deficit to only four points after two more penalties by Maui.With time running out, Namibia capitalised on an error by the Cooks and closed out the match through replacement Cedric Haraseb’s try six minutes from time.Kaizemi added the icing to the cake with a superbly struck conversion to make the final score 25-14.Namibia will now meet Korea in the fifth place play off on Sunday at the Stade Francais Club, while the Cook Islands will meet Jamaica in the seventh place playoff on the same day.Namibian winger Chrysander Botha said their defensive effort laid the platform for their victory: “I really feel proud to be a part of this team and we eventually won thanks to a fine defensive effort.We can now concentrate on our next match and would like to sign off with a win.”Namibian captain Thomasau Forbes also praised their defensive effort: “We produced some great tackling today, which was the key to the win.We played considerably better than the first two matches and stuck at it – our defence made the difference.”Namibia will now play Korea in the fifth place play-off on Sunday, after Korea beat Jamaica 55-17 on Wednesday.In another Pool A match on Wednesday, Chile beat Romania to book their place in Sunday’s final.They will play the Pool B winners, Uruguay, who beat Georgia 20-16.www.namibiasport.com.na
