Venter upbeat on World Cup

NAMIBIAN senior rugby team coach Johan Venter believes that this year’s Rugby World Cup in France will not be a learning experience for the side, but an event where they will have to produce the goods.Venter told The Namibian Sport in an interview yesterday that his team would be geared towards producing the results by playing a typical Namibian brand of rugby.

“I think it is stupid for one to always say that a team is young and are still in the learning process. Those days are gone.We are now playing in our third World Cup and there is no way that we are still going to learn there.We will go out with a positive attitude of winning matches,” he said.He said he wants players to take their chances and play confidently without being preoccupied with the strengths and popularity of the other nations on the rugby field.”I want them to run the ball, do the extraordinary on the field and to show that Namibia has good players who can withstand the might of any team on any given day,” he said.Venter, who also led the Namibian team to the 1999 World Cup as coach, says Namibia has an abundance of talented players and if they play more regularly as a unit, they can be a force in world rugby.”We have a lot of players in Europe and South Africa who have not yet played for the national team.Most of these players are playing for top clubs and are now eager to come back and represent their country,” he said.There are about 30 professional players in South Africa alone that Venter has identified as potential national team material.He said he wants the team to play at least eight international friendly matches before the World Cup starts in France in September.So far, England, Samoa, South Africa A and the South African Amateur sides are lined up for possible friendly internationals, but Venter said the Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) was still negotiating the possibility of playing against those countries.Namibia is grouped with hosts France, Argentina, Ireland and Georgia.Namibia also played at the 2003 World Cup, which was held in Australia and struggled tremendously under the tutelage of New Zealand-born coach Dave Waterston.This time, Venter said they would be prepared to beat even France.”We are going to beat France.They have a big pack and also have a lot of flair in the backline, but I am confident that with our brand of rugby, we can overcome the most difficult opponents,” he said.Namibia qualified for the World Cup at the end of last year after beating Morocco in a victory away from home.Venter said the team has already started training, but the domestic players have not yet responded well due to the Christmas break.He said more players are expected to join the training from Monday.Venter has already selected the top 50 players who will be put to the test on January 22.He said more players would be invited, as they will be assessed during club competitions and league games.This year, players will also be monitored during the proposed MTC Cup Championships, while other tournaments such as the Western Suburbs Windhoek Lager Club Championships will also help identify players.But the most important source of picking players for trials will be the normal league matches, according to Venter.He said in their preparations ahead of the World Cup, the national team will need a lot of support from their main sponsor, Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTC).He thanked the company for its commitment to Namibian sport in general and the interest and confidence they have shown in Namibian rugby.Those days are gone.We are now playing in our third World Cup and there is no way that we are still going to learn there.We will go out with a positive attitude of winning matches,” he said.He said he wants players to take their chances and play confidently without being preoccupied with the strengths and popularity of the other nations on the rugby field.”I want them to run the ball, do the extraordinary on the field and to show that Namibia has good players who can withstand the might of any team on any given day,” he said.Venter, who also led the Namibian team to the 1999 World Cup as coach, says Namibia has an abundance of talented players and if they play more regularly as a unit, they can be a force in world rugby.”We have a lot of players in Europe and South Africa who have not yet played for the national team.Most of these players are playing for top clubs and are now eager to come back and represent their country,” he said.There are about 30 professional players in South Africa alone that Venter has identified as potential national team material.He said he wants the team to play at least eight international friendly matches before the World Cup starts in France in September.So far, England, Samoa, South Africa A and the South African Amateur sides are lined up for possible friendly internationals, but Venter said the Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) was still negotiating the possibility of playing against those countries.Namibia is grouped with hosts France, Argentina, Ireland and Georgia.Namibia also played at the 2003 World Cup, which was held in Australia and struggled tremendously under the tutelage of New Zealand-born coach Dave Waterston.This time, Venter said they would be prepared to beat even France.”We are going to beat France.They have a big pack and also have a lot of flair in the backline, but I am confident that with our brand of rugby, we can overcome the most difficult opponents,” he said.Namibia qualified for the World Cup at the end of last year after beating Morocco in a victory away from home.Venter said the team has already started training, but the domestic players have not yet responded well due to the Christmas break.He said more players are expected to join the training from Monday.Venter has already selected the top 50 players who will be put to the test on January 22.He said more players would be invited, as they will be assessed during club competitions and league games.This year, players will also be monitored during the proposed MTC Cup Championships, while other tournaments such as the Western Suburbs Windhoek Lager Club Championships will also help identify players.But the most important source of picking players for trials will be the normal league matches, according to Venter.He said in their preparations ahead of the World Cup, the national team will need a lot of support from their main sponsor, Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTC).He thanked the company for its commitment to Namibian sport in general and the interest and confidence they have shown in Namibian rugby.