Ongos Sports Club will hold a pre-season tournament, the Ongos Football Day, on Sunday.
This is in preparation of the new season as well as the CAF Women’s Champions League.
Ongos Ladies had a fantastic domestic season, remaining unbeaten in the league after winning 21 and drawing one match, and then went on to complete the double when they beat Khomas Nampol in the PstBet NFA Cup final last weekend.
They will now represent Namibia at the CAF Champions League in Blantyre, Malawi, from 15 to 24 August, where they will come up against former champions Green Buffaloes of Zambia, the Univeristy of Western Cape from South Africa, and Herentals of Zimbabwe in Group A of the competition.
At a press conference in Windhoek yesterday, their coach, Shamma Gure, said their preparations are on track.
“Our preparations have been underway for about two weeks now. We had quite a good crop turning out, especially the loanees that we had from Nampol, Beauties and Ramblers, who were hard at work in the absence of those who were away on national duty,” he said.
“We had a few injury concerns, but they are in the green zone now and have been able to feature in two preparatory friendlies we had. The squad is looking sharp and we are looking to finalise our list this weekend and then polish up on the rough edges,” he added.
It will be Ongos’ second appearance in the CAF Champions League, and team captain Lovisa Mulunga said she expected them to do better than their debut season when they failed to make it past the first round.
“We have been drawn in a tough group, but we are really looking forward to our matches. I think we are better prepared now. The first time was more of a learning curve for us, but I think the girls are really well prepared and ready now,” she said.
“We’ve got one of the best coaches and his imput has really brought about an improvement in the girls, so we expect them to play at a very high level,” she added.
Ongos’ director of sport, Ricardo Mannetti, gave more information about the Ongos Football Day which takes place at Unam Stadium on Sunday.
“The men’s and women’s teams will be playing on the same day against various teams. The ladies will enter two teams that will face Khomas Nampol and Ramblers Ladies, and these matches will also give the coach a last chance to see who can perform at the required at level,” he said.
“The men, who have also started with their pre-season training for the league that starts in September, will play against Khomas Nampol and Unam, with the matches starting at 08h00 on Sunday morning till 19h00, when the men’s and women’s champions will be crowned,” he said.
At the same occasion Ongos Sports Club unveiled its new logo, featuring the African fish eagle, which Mannetti said symbolised the club’s core values and aspirations.
“The African fish eagle, which is known for its strength, vision and grace, represents the qualifites of Ongos Sports Club. As a symbol of power and freedom the eagle reflects our club’s commitment to excellence, resilience and determination.
“The eagle’s keen eyesight sympolises our vision to inspire and uplift our athletes and community, while its soaring flight represents the limitless potential we believe in nurturing within our club,” he said.
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