Wikipedia

Namibia national rugby union team

For the Namibian representative rugby union team playing in South African domestic competitions, see Welwitschias.
Namibia
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Welwitschias
EmblemAfrican fish eagle
UnionNamibia Rugby Union
Head coachPhil Davies
CaptainJohan Deysel
Most capsEugene Jantjies (68)
Top scorerTheuns Kotzé (344)
Top try scorerGerhard Mans (27)
Home stadiumHage Geingob Rugby Stadium
First colours
Second colours
World Rugby ranking
Current24 (as of 23 November 2020)
Highest18 (2017)
Lowest29 (2006)
First international
South West Africa 0–9 British and Irish Lions
(Windhoek, Namibia; 5 July 1955)
Biggest win
Namibia 118–0 Tunisia
(Windhoek, Namibia; 23 June 2018)
Biggest defeat
Australia 142–0 Namibia
(Adelaide, Australia; 25 October 2003)
World Cup
Appearances6 (First in 1999)
Best resultPool stage, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015 and 2019
Websitewww.namibianrugby.com

The Namibia national rugby union team represents Namibia in men's international rugby union competitions nicknamed the Welwitschias, are a tier-two nation in the World Rugby tier system, and have participated in five Rugby World Cup competitions since their first appearance in 1999. They are governed by the Namibia Rugby Union.

Namibia has been playing international rugby since the early 1900s. As well as having competed at the World Cup, Namibia annually competes in the Africa Cup. Until independence, players for Namibia were also eligible to represent South Africa, with Namibian-born Springboks including Jan Ellis. As of 21 September 2020, they are ranked 24th in the world.[1]

History

1990s

Rugby union has been played in Namibia since 1916 when it was introduced by soldiers from South Africa who had invaded the German-run colony.

Before Namibia gained its independence in 1990, the team, as South West Africa, played in South Africa's domestic club competition, the Currie Cup. The team achieved their best result in the 1988 season, where they finished third.

The Namibia Rugby Union was formed in March 1990, and it joined the International Rugby Board in the same month. Independence came too late for Namibia to qualify for the 1991 Rugby World Cup. Hardened by regular, tough competition in the Currie Cup, the first few years of Namibian rugby union were relatively successful, their highest point being 2–0 home series victories over Ireland and Italy in 1991. That year the Welwitschias won all 10 of their Tests, the others being five victories against Zimbabwe and one against Portugal in Lisbon. One of Namibia's players, Andre Stoop was signed by English champion rugby league club, Wigan.

During the international seasons Namibia played six games; the first of which was a 55–23 win over Zimbabwe. Following another victory over Zimbabwe, in 1993 Namibia played Wales in Windhoek, losing 23–38. Namibia completed big victories over the Arabian Gulf rugby team, Kenya and Zimbabwe in the initial rounds of 1995 Rugby World Cup qualifying.

Russia toured Namibia in 1994, defeating the home team 31–12 in Windhoek. Although Namibia defeated Zimbabwe that year, the team lost to Côte d'Ivoire and drew with Morocco (all in Casablanca). In 1996 Namibia played two matches; losing 13–15 to Zimbabwe, and then defeating them by one point in a subsequent meeting. They played two games in 1997 as well, losing to Tonga and Zimbabwe.

During 1998 Namibia took part in the African tournaments for 1999 Rugby World Cup qualification. They started out in Round 3, where they finished second in the pool behind Zimbabwe on points difference (defeating Zimbabwe but losing to Tunisia). Namibia defeated Côte d'Ivoire, Morocco and Zimbabwe to qualify for the 1999 Rugby World Cup.

The team's participation was put in doubt when the Namibian government's Sports Commission barred the team from participating in a South African competition it had been using as preparation, and threatened to stop the team from taking part in the World Cup. This followed criticisms from non-white rugby clubs that the Namibian Rugby Union displayed racist attitudes.[2] Ultimately, however, the team were allowed to take part.

The 1999 World Cup marked their debut at the tournament and since then they have been Africa's second representative alongside South Africa. While they suffered heavy defeats by France, Fiji and Canada, they took pride in scoring an early try and being level with France after 20 minutes.

2000–present

However, with a small player base, and lacking frequent or strong competition, the team has deteriorated in recent years. Their record in the World Cups has been poor as they have not yet managed a win. Their record defeat, 142–0 against Australia in the 2003 tournament, led to some questioning the presence of the minor teams at the tournament.

Namibia initially struggled in the qualifiers for the 2007 tournament, suffering a shock defeat to Kenya, their first ever to the African Great Lakes nation, and another to Tunisia. Following the Kenya loss, the Namibian squad slumped to 28th in the IRB rankings. However, after defeating Tunisia at home, the team was effectively through to two deciding matches against Morocco, to determine which of the two African nations would make it to France in 2007. Namibia convincingly won both legs, qualifying for the World Cup.

As the lowest ranked team at the start of the 2007 World Cup, Namibia was given no chance in its opening game of against Ireland. However, the Namibian squad frustrated Ireland, then the 5th ranked team in the world, and scored two tries for its narrowest World Cup loss of 17–32. They were convincingly beaten in their games with Argentina (63–3) and France (87–10). And, in the game in which they were seen as having the best chance to win, they suffered a disappointing 30–0 loss to Georgia, to end the tournament winless.

The African side was able to win the IRB Nations Cup in 2010.

Namibia achieved their fourth World Cup qualification in a row after defeating Côte d'Ivoire in 2011. They were drawn into Pool D, with South Africa, Wales, Fiji and Samoa. Their first match in the Rugby World Cup, held in New Zealand (at the Rotorua International Stadium) resulted in a defeat by Fiji by 45–29. Their second match in this tournament was a 49–12 loss to Samoa but the third was an 87–0 loss to South Africa. In their final pool game, Wales proved to be too strong, as Namibia conceded 12 tries in an 81–7 defeat. Theuns Kotzé provided his side's one consolation, as his conversion of a Heinz Koll try made him Namibia's all-time highest Rugby World Cup points scorer.

The Welwitschias played the 2015 Vodacom Cup, collecting six defeats and one win against the Limpopo Blue Bulls. Namibia qualified for their fourth Rugby World Cup in 2015. They were placed in Pool C with New Zealand, Georgia, Tonga and Argentina. They managed to lose to Georgia by a single point (17-16), their best result ever and winning their first bonus point at the competition.

They qualified for the 2019 Rugby World Cup for the sixth time by winning the Rugby Africa Gold Cup and joined pool B along with South Africa, New Zealand, Italy and Canada.[3]

Wins against Tier 1 nations

Record vs Touring Teams

Before independence Namibia played as South West Africa and played touring teams who toured South Africa. [4]

Date Score Touring Team Venue
5 July 1955 0–9 British and Irish Lions Mabel Vlok Park, Windhoek
8 July 1960 3–27 New Zealand South West Stadium, Windhoek
27 July 1961 14–14 Australia South West Stadium, Windhoek
12 June 1962 6–14 British and Irish Lions South West Stadium, Windhoek
31 July 1963 6–24 Australia South West Stadium, Windhoek
15 June 1968 0–23 British and Irish Lions South West Stadium, Windhoek
1 September 1969 8–33 Australia South West Stadium, Windhoek
4 July 1970 0–16 New Zealand South West Stadium, Windhoek
8 June 1971 6-35 France South West Stadium, Windhoek
18 May 1974 16–23 British and Irish Lions South West Stadium, Windhoek
17 June 1975 13–13 France South West Stadium, Windhoek

Record

See also: Namibia at the Rugby World Cup
Men's World Rugby Rankings
Top 30 rankings as of 15 February, 2021[5]
Rank Change* Team Points
1 Steady South Africa 094.20
2 Steady New Zealand 088.95
3 Steady England 087.49
4 Steady France 086.42
5 Increase 1 Australia 083.08
6 Decrease 1 Ireland 082.31
7 Increase 1 Wales 082.11
8 Decrease 1 Scotland 081.29
9 Steady Argentina 080.31
10 Steady Japan 079.29
11 Steady Fiji 076.87
12 Steady Georgia 072.18
13 Steady Tonga 071.44
14 Steady Italy 070.88
15 Steady Samoa 070.72
16 Steady United States 068.10
17 Steady Spain 067.71
18 Steady Uruguay 067.02
19 Steady Romania 065.33
20 Steady Portugal 062.25
21 Steady Russia 062.12
22 Steady Hong Kong 061.23
23 Steady Canada 061.11
24 Steady Namibia 061.04
25 Steady Netherlands 060.09
26 Steady Brazil 058.19
27 Steady Belgium 057.17
28 Steady Switzerland 054.12
29 Steady Chile 053.81
30 Steady Germany 053.13
*Change from the previous week
Namibia's historical rankings

See or edit raw graph data.

Source: World Rugby - Graph updated to 16 November 2020[5]

Below is table of the representative rugby matches played by a Namibia national XV at test level up until 22 April 2020.[6]

Opponent Played Won Lost Drawn Win % For Aga Diff
Arabian Gulf Rugby Football Union (emblem).gif Arabian Gulf 1 1 0 0 100.00% 64 20 +44
Argentina 3 0 3 0 0.00% 36 194 –158
Australia 1 0 1 0 0.00% 0 142 –142
Canada 2 0 2 0 0.00% 24 89 —65
Fiji 2 0 2 0 0.00% 43 116 –73
France 2 0 2 0 0.00% 23 134 —111
France XV 2 0 2 0 0.00% 36 49 —13
Georgia 5 1 4 0 20.00% 73 112 —39
Germany 2 2 0 0 100.00% 137 33 +104
Hong Kong 1 1 0 0 100.00% 22 12 +10
Ireland 4 2 2 0 50.00% 65 117 –52
Italy 4 2 2 0 50.00% 96 122 —26
Ivory Coast 4 2 1 1 50.00% 101 50 +51
Kenya 11 9 2 0 81.82% 544 201 +343
Madagascar 4 3 1 0 75.00% 310 84 +226
Morocco 8 5 2 1 62.50% 196 144 +52
New Zealand 2 0 2 0 0.00% 23 129 –106
Portugal 8 6 2 0 75.00% 258 148 +110
Romania 6 1 5 0 16.67% 66 158 –92
Russia 7 2 5 0 28.57% 141 183 –42
Samoa 2 0 2 0 0.00% 25 89 —64
Senegal 4 4 0 0 100.00% 163 40 +123
South Africa 3 0 3 0 0.00% 16 249 —233
Spain 6 1 5 0 28.57% 120 172 —52
Tonga 2 0 2 0 0.00% 35 55 –20
Tunisia 11 8 3 0 72.73% 368 159 +209
Uganda 5 4 1 0 80.00% 244 94 +150
Uruguay 4 1 3 0 25.00% 112 142 -30
Wales 4 0 4 0 0.00% 69 171 -102
West Germany 1 1 0 0 100.00% 54 7 +47
Zambia 2 2 0 0 100.00% 132 20 +112
Zimbabwe 32 29 3 0 90.63% 1198 665 +533
Total 156 87 66 2 55.77% 4866 4155 +711

Current squad

Namibia named a 31-man squad for the 2019 Rugby World Cup on 2 September.[7]

Player Position Date of birth (age) Caps Club/province
Obert Nortjé Hooker 17 April 1997 (aged 22) 17 Uruguay Peñarol Rugby
Louis van der Westhuizen Hooker 25 February 1995 (aged 24) 21 South Africa Cheetahs
Torsten van Jaarsveld Hooker 30 June 1987 (aged 32) 16 France Bayonne
Aranos Coetzee Prop 14 May 1988 (aged 31) 24 South Africa Free State Cheetahs
AJ de Klerk Prop 9 December 1987 (aged 31) 31 Namibia Welwitschias
André Rademeyer Prop 24 June 1998 (aged 21) 6 England Yorkshire
Des Sethie Prop 9 December 1992 (aged 26) 13 Namibia Welwitschias
Nelius Theron Prop 29 January 1997 (aged 22) 7 South Africa Leopards
Johan Retief Lock 10 October 1995 (aged 23) 10 South Africa Leopards
Tjiuee Uanivi Lock 31 December 1990 (aged 28) 33 France Massy
PJ van Lill Lock 4 December 1983 (aged 35) 52 France Valence Romans
Adriaan Booysen Loose forward 17 May 1996 (aged 23) 7 United States Houston Sabercats
Wian Conradie Loose forward 14 October 1994 (aged 24) 19 United States Dallas Jackals
Thomasau Forbes Loose forward 12 October 1988 (aged 30) 19 Namibia Welwitschias
Prince ǃGaoseb Loose forward 7 July 1998 (aged 21) 3 England Yorkshire
Max Katjijeko Loose forward 8 April 1995 (aged 24) 15 Paraguay Olimpia Lions
Rohan Kitshoff Loose forward 13 September 1985 (aged 34) 45 Namibia Welwitschias
Janco Venter Loose forward 19 September 1994 (aged 25) 28 England Saracens F.C.
Eugene Jantjies Scrum-half 10 August 1986 (aged 33) 71 Namibia Welwitschias
TC Kisting Scrum-half 13 January 1994 (aged 25) 10 Romania Baia Mare
Damian Stevens Scrum-half 2 June 1995 (aged 24) 27 United States New Orleans Gold
Cliven Loubser Fly-half 24 February 1997 (aged 22) 17 England Yorkshire
Darryl de la Harpe Centre 2 October 1986 (aged 32) 51 England Yorkshire
Johan Deysel (c) Centre 26 September 1991 (aged 27) 23 France Colomiers
Justin Newman Centre 17 February 1995 (aged 24) 16 Namibia Welwitschias
Janry du Toit Centre 26 August 1996 (aged 23) 3 Uruguay Peñarol Rugby
JC Greyling Wing 21 June 1991 (aged 28) 35 Namibia Welwitschias
Lesley Klim Wing 16 January 1995 (aged 24) 13 Jersey Jersey Reds
PJ Walters Wing 23 April 1993 (aged 26) 2 Namibia Welwitschias
Chad Plato Fullback 21 April 1998 (aged 21) 4 Namibia Welwitschias
Johann Tromp Fullback 23 December 1990 (aged 28) 43 Russia Strela

Individual all-time records

Most caps

# Player Pos Span Mat Start Sub Pts Tries Conv Pens Drop Won Lost Draw Win %
1. Eugene Jantjies Scrum-half 2006–2019 70 46 24 72 3 15 8 1 35 34 1 50.71
2. Chrysander Botha Fullback 2008–2018 55 53 2 209 28 15 13 0 34 20 1 62.72
3. Tinus du Plessis Flanker 2006–2016 52 44 8 40 8 0 0 0 27 24 1 52.88
4. PJ van Lill Flanker 2006–present 51 34 17 35 7 0 0 0 25 25 1 50.00
5. Darryl de la Harpe Centre 2010–2019 50 39 11 50 10 0 0 0 25 25 0 50.00
6. Johnny Redelinghuys Prop 2006–2015 49 31 18 25 5 0 0 0 22 26 1 45.91
7. Rohan Kitshoff Flanker 2010–present 45 31 14 110 22 0 0 0 24 21 0 53.33
8. Johann Tromp Centre 2012-present 43 34 9 95 19 0 0 0 24 19 0 55.81
9. Theuns Kotzé Fly-half 2011–present 40 35 5 430 6 110 55 5 21 19 0 52.50
10. Casper Viviers Prop 2010–present 37 28 9 5 1 0 0 0 21 16 0 56.75

Last updated: 06 October 2019 [8]

Most tries

# Player Pos Span Mat Start Sub Pts Tries Conv Pens Drop
1. Chrysander Botha Fullback 2008–2018 55 53 2 209 28 15 13 0
2. Gerhard Mans Wing 1990–1994 27 26 1 114 26 0 0 0
3. Rohan Kitshoff Flanker 2010–present 45 31 14 110 22 0 0 0
Eden Meyer Wing 1991–1996 21 20 1 102 22 0 0 0
5. JC Greyling Centre 2014–present 35 28 7 105 21 0 0 0
6. Johann Tromp Centre 2012–present 43 34 9 95 19 0 0 0
7. Melrick Afrika Wing 2003–2007 23 18 5 62 12 1 0 0
8. David Philander Centre 2008–2017 30 23 7 55 11 0 0 0
9. Darryl de la Harpe Centre 2010-2019 50 39 11 50 10 0 0 0
Du Preez Grobler Centre 2001–2008 25 21 4 50 10 0 0 0
Corné Powell Centre 2001–2007 26 24 2 50 10 0 0 0
Riaan van Wyk Wing 2002–2004 10 10 0 50 10 0 0 0

Last updated: 06 October 2019 [9]

Most points

# Player Pos Span Mat Start Sub Pts Tries Conv Pens Drop
1. Theuns Kotzé Fly-half 2011–present 40 35 5 430 6 110 55 5
2. Jaco Coetzee Fly-half 1990-1995 28 27 1 335 6 81 45 3
3. Chrysander Botha Fullback 2008–2018 55 53 2 209 28 15 13 0
4. Cliven Loubser Fly-half 2017-present 17 15 2 169 4 52 15 0
5. Mot Schreuder Fly-half 2002-2007 19 17 2 158 4 42 18 0
6. Rudie van Vuuren Fly-half 1997-2003 15 10 5 120 3 27 17 0
7. Gerhard Mans Wing 1990-1994 27 26 1 114 26 0 0 0
8. Rohan Kitshoff Flanker 2010-present 45 31 14 110 22 0 0 0
9. JC Greyling Centre 2014–present 35 28 7 105 21 0 0 0
10. Eden Meyer Wing 1991-1996 21 20 1 102 22 0 0 0

Last updated: New Zealand vs Namibia, 06 October 2019. Statistics include officially capped matches only.

Most points in a match

# Player Pos Pts Tries Conv Pens Drop Opposition Venue Date
1. Justinus van der Westhuizen Fly-half 33 3 9 0 0 Zambia Namibia Windhoek 26/05/2007
2. Jaco Coetzee Fly-half 30 3 6 1 0 Kenya Kenya Nairobi 07/07/1993
3. Chrysander Botha Fullback 29 2 5 3 0 Ivory Coast Namibia Windhoek 27/06/2009
4. Moolman Olivier Fly-half 26 1 11 0 0 Portugal Namibia Windhoek 21/04/1990
Cliven Loubser Fly-half 26 2 8 0 0 Morocco Morocco Casablanca 30/06/2018
6. Riaan van Wyk Wing 25 5 0 0 0 Madagascar Namibia Windhoek 15/06/2002
Theuns Kotzé Fly-half 25 1 4 4 0 Russia Namibia Windhoek 18/07/2015
8. Gerhard Mans Wing 24 6 0 0 0 Portugal Namibia Windhoek 21/04/1990
Mot Schreuder Fly-half 24 0 12 0 0 Kenya Namibia Windhoek 27/05/2006
Theuns Kotzé Fly-half 24 0 12 0 0 Madagascar Namibia Windhoek 06/07/2014

Last updated: New Zealand vs Namibia, 06 October 2019. Statistics include officially capped matches only.

Most tries in a match

# Player Pos Pts Tries Conv Pens Drop Opposition Venue Date
1. Gerhard Mans Wing 24 6 0 0 0 Portugal Namibia Windhoek 21/04/1990
2. Riaan van Wyk Wing 25 5 0 0 0 Madagascar Namibia Windhoek 15/06/2002
3. Eden Meyer Wing 20 4 0 0 0 Zimbabwe Namibia Windhoek 16/05/1992
Melrick Afrika Wing 20 4 0 0 0 Kenya Kenya Nairobi 16/08/2003
Renaldo Bothma Number 8 20 4 0 0 0 Madagascar Kenya Nairobi 06/07/2014
Rohan Kitshoff Flanker 20 4 0 0 0 Senegal Namibia Windhoek 08/07/2017
JC Greyling Centre 20 4 0 0 0 Tunisia Namibia Windhoek 23/06/2018
Lesley Klim Wing 20 4 0 0 0 Tunisia Namibia Windhoek 23/06/2018
9. 15 players on 3 tries

Last updated: New Zealand vs Namibia, 06 October 2019. Statistics include officially capped matches only.

Most matches as captain

# Player Pos Span Mat Won Lost Draw % Pts Tries Conv Pens Drop
1. Gerhard Mans Wing 1990–1994 26 20 5 1 78.84 114 26 0 0 0
2. Jacques Burger Flanker 2007–2015 17 7 10 0 41.17 25 5 0 0 0
3. Corné Powell Centre 2002–2007 13 9 4 0 69.23 25 5 0 0 0
4. Rohan Kitshoff Flanker 2014–present 12 8 4 0 66.66 75 15 0 0 0
Kees Lensing Prop 2006–2009 12 6 5 1 54.16 0 0 0 0 0
6. Quinn Hough Flanker 1997–1999 11 6 5 0 54.54 25 5 0 0 0
PJ van Lill Flanker 2012–2015 11 7 4 0 63.63 10 2 0 0 0

Last updated: New Zealand vs Namibia, 06 October 2019. Statistics include officially capped matches only.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Rugby World Rankings
  2. ^ Chris Hewett (29 April 1999). "Rugby Union: England bucks the global growth trend". The Independent.
  3. ^ Tremlett, Sam (13 October 2019). "Namibia Rugby World Cup Fixtures, Squad, Group, Guide". Rugby World. Retrieved 22 August 2020.
  4. ^ Stats
  5. ^ a b "Men's World Rankings". World Rugby. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  6. ^ Namibia rugby statistics
  7. ^ "Jantjies on verge of fourth tournament". rugbyworldcup.com. Rugby World Cup. 2 September 2019. Retrieved 3 September 2019.
  8. ^ "Rugby Union - ESPN Scrum - Statsguru - Test matches - Player records". ESPN Scrum. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
  9. ^ "Rugby Union - ESPN Scrum - Statsguru - Test matches - Player records". ESPN Scrum. Retrieved 23 September 2019.

External links

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