Warriors face fitness woes

THE Brave Warriors are in for a torrid time when they face Ethiopia in an African Nations Cup qualifier in Windhoek with only a week and a half to go, but with no team in camp to date.

The national team, released after their match against the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in an African Nations Cup qualifier in early September, have not met as a team to prepare for their next clash against Ethiopia at the Independence Stadium on October 7. The team’s preparations have been hampered by the inactive domestic league, as most locally based players are not match fit and will struggle against Ethiopia if used.Leading football officials argue that the lack of football in the country will greatly hamper the national team’s campaign to reach the finals of the African Nations Cup to be held in Ghana in 2008.African Stars chairman Mbakumua Hengari believes that local players will have a mountain to climb when it comes to match-fitness because most have not played a single competitive match due to the delayed start of the league.”A week and a half is not sufficient time to prepare a team for such an important match.It is unfortunate that football authorities are currently embroiled in administrative battles, a situation which has ultimately affected the play on the fields,” he said.Hengari said he hoped that next season, league issues would be dealt with promptly to avoid delaying the league.Former Orlando Pirates chairman Wessel Nanuseb said he was worried about Namibia’s chances of making it into the continent’s biggest football showpiece.”It is a sad situation that we are still fighting endless battles at the expense of the players who ought to go out there and play.It will be difficult to win matches on the national level because of the match-fitness of especially locally based players,” he said.He said despite that, he was also hopeful that with the positive attitude that the players have shown in their last few matches, they might give a good performance despite the delay in the start of the league.Civics team manager Paul Stramis said if coach Ben Bamfuchile opts for more foreign-based players, the Brave Warriors will match their opponents, as most of the professionals have been active for their respective teams.”It is a concern for the local players because some of them are demoralised because they keep on training while there is nothing in sight for them in terms of matches,” he said.At the moment, the locally based players form the bulk of the national team and Bamfuchile will be left with no option but to use at least 50 per cent of them, provided the internationals are all available in key positions.The locals also lack experience at the highest level, with about 70 per cent of them not having played more than 10 matches for the national side, while the foreign internationals have been lukewarm in their recent performances.The biggest concern for the Namibians is the lack of lethal strikers, but their midfield and defence has been steady.In fact, all areas of the Warriors will be tested to the limit depending on who the opposition is.The Brave Warriors have only played four matches at the top level this year, of which they lost three and won one.They lost to Seychelles (4-2 on penalties after a one-all draw) in the Cosafa Castle Cup, beat Malawi (3-2) in the same competition and lost to South Africa (1-0) in an international friendly.They also lost to DRC (3-2) in the African Nations Cup earlier this month.The highest number of matches in a season Namibia has ever played was the 16 they played in 1997.Their second best season was in 2001 when they played 15 matches.In 2004 and 2005, Namibia only played two matches a year, the lowest in the history of the country apart from the single match they played in 1989, just before Namibia’s Independence.The team’s preparations have been hampered by the inactive domestic league, as most locally based players are not match fit and will struggle against Ethiopia if used.Leading football officials argue that the lack of football in the country will greatly hamper the national team’s campaign to reach the finals of the African Nations Cup to be held in Ghana in 2008.African Stars chairman Mbakumua Hengari believes that local players will have a mountain to climb when it comes to match-fitness because most have not played a single competitive match due to the delayed start of the league.”A week and a half is not sufficient time to prepare a team for such an important match.It is unfortunate that football authorities are currently embroiled in administrative battles, a situation which has ultimately affected the play on the fields,” he said.Hengari said he hoped that next season, league issues would be dealt with promptly to avoid delaying the league.Former Orlando Pirates chairman Wessel Nanuseb said he was worried about Namibia’s chances of making it into the continent’s biggest football showpiece.”It is a sad situation that we are still fighting endless battles at the expense of the players who ought to go out there and play.It will be difficult to win matches on the national level because of the match-fitness of especially locally based players,” he said.He said despite that, he was also hopeful that with the positive attitude that the players have shown in their last few matches, they might give a good performance despite the delay in the start of the league.Civics team manager Paul Stramis said if coach Ben Bamfuchile opts for more foreign-based players, the Brave Warriors will match their opponents, as most of the professionals have been active for their respective teams.”It is a concern for the local players because some of them are demoralised because they keep on training while there is nothing in sight for them in terms of matches,” he said.At the moment, the locally based players form the bulk of the national team and Bamfuchile will be left with no option but to use at least 50 per cent of them, provided the internationals are all available in key positions.The locals also lack experience at the highest level, with about 70 per cent of them not having played more than 10 matches for the national side, while the foreign internationals have been lukewarm in their recent performances.The biggest concern for the Namibians is the lack of lethal strikers, but their midfield and defence has been steady.In fact, all areas of the Warriors will be tested to the limit depending on who the opposition is.The Brave Warriors have only played four matches at the top level this year, of which they lost three and won one.They lost to Seychelles (4-2 on penalties after a one-all draw) in the Cosafa Castle Cup, beat Malawi (3-2) in the same competition and lost to South Africa (1-0) in an international friendly.They also lost to DRC (3-2) in the African Nations Cup earlier this month.The highest number of matches in a season Namibia has ever played was the 16 they played in 1997.Their second best season was in 2001 when they played 15 matches.In 2004 and 2005, Namibia only played two matches a year, the lowest in the history of the country apart from the single match they played in 1989, just before Namibia’s Independence.