Hosts wary of Zimbabwe on opening day
Indoor hockey
Matches of international quality awaits at an exciting Indoor Africa Cup tournament.
The Namibian men’s and women’s squads have been fully focused on their final preparations ahead of the Indoor Hockey Africa Cup starting at MTC The Dome in Swakopmund tomorrow.
Hosts Namibia and South Africa are firm favourites to secure the two available spots in each gender towards qualifying for the 2025 Indoor World Cup to be held in Croatia.
Zimbabwe and Botswana will be searching for the opportunity to create an upset against the top-ranked nations.
With both Namibian team opening their campaign against Zimbabwe on Tursday, head coaches Trevor Cormack (men) and Shayne Cormack (women) have both reiterated that Zimbabwe is an opponent to be respected and that should never be under-estimated.
“Due to financial restrictions, we have had less time than usual to prepare for this tournament, where we would normally start about three months before. We have five squad members who joined us from South Africa, meaning that we would be at full-strength on the training pitch from Monday (20 May),” Trevor said in an interview on the Sport Wrap Show.
National pride will be at the forefront, with lots at stake in the race to determine the continent’s World Cup qualifiers.
On the women’s approach, Shayne Cormack said: “In some ways we are a new team since last September, with a new system and new dynamics introduced. Our players have sacrificed and have worked hard and are motivated to make the country proud once again.”
Shayne is fully aware that the South African ladies team would love to affirm their position at the top.
“In the previous two tournaments, our women’s team have beaten South Africa in the Africa Cup final, despite losing to them in the pool phase. We have some untested new caps in our squad, but we are also excited to see what they can bring to our combinations.”
While Shayne’s selection for the women’s team had to compensate for the unavailability of some candidates due to study or work commitments, she appreciates the unwavering commitment of those who have had to take unpaid work leave to represent Namibia.
“Making the final squad selection is often the most difficult part of a coach’s job. It’s much easier leaving out players who may be slacking a bit, but we’ve had to make the cut between players who have shown full commitment and who deserved to be included,” Trevor said.
Both coaches have encouraged the hockey community and the sporting public to experience the matches of international quality at The Dome and to help create a vibe of encouragement to carry Namibia not only towards World Cup qualification, but to the hard-earned continental titles.
• Tickets are N$60 each for Thursday, Friday and Saturday’s matches / N$100 for the finals’ day on Sunday / N$250 for the four-day package (webtickets.com.na).
• Can’t make it to Swakopmund? Watch it LIVE on oneuptwo.com/ntv or on DStv Namibia channel 285 or GOtv channel 25.
Hosts Namibia and South Africa are firm favourites to secure the two available spots in each gender towards qualifying for the 2025 Indoor World Cup to be held in Croatia.
Zimbabwe and Botswana will be searching for the opportunity to create an upset against the top-ranked nations.
With both Namibian team opening their campaign against Zimbabwe on Tursday, head coaches Trevor Cormack (men) and Shayne Cormack (women) have both reiterated that Zimbabwe is an opponent to be respected and that should never be under-estimated.
“Due to financial restrictions, we have had less time than usual to prepare for this tournament, where we would normally start about three months before. We have five squad members who joined us from South Africa, meaning that we would be at full-strength on the training pitch from Monday (20 May),” Trevor said in an interview on the Sport Wrap Show.
National pride will be at the forefront, with lots at stake in the race to determine the continent’s World Cup qualifiers.
On the women’s approach, Shayne Cormack said: “In some ways we are a new team since last September, with a new system and new dynamics introduced. Our players have sacrificed and have worked hard and are motivated to make the country proud once again.”
Shayne is fully aware that the South African ladies team would love to affirm their position at the top.
“In the previous two tournaments, our women’s team have beaten South Africa in the Africa Cup final, despite losing to them in the pool phase. We have some untested new caps in our squad, but we are also excited to see what they can bring to our combinations.”
While Shayne’s selection for the women’s team had to compensate for the unavailability of some candidates due to study or work commitments, she appreciates the unwavering commitment of those who have had to take unpaid work leave to represent Namibia.
“Making the final squad selection is often the most difficult part of a coach’s job. It’s much easier leaving out players who may be slacking a bit, but we’ve had to make the cut between players who have shown full commitment and who deserved to be included,” Trevor said.
Both coaches have encouraged the hockey community and the sporting public to experience the matches of international quality at The Dome and to help create a vibe of encouragement to carry Namibia not only towards World Cup qualification, but to the hard-earned continental titles.
• Tickets are N$60 each for Thursday, Friday and Saturday’s matches / N$100 for the finals’ day on Sunday / N$250 for the four-day package (webtickets.com.na).
• Can’t make it to Swakopmund? Watch it LIVE on oneuptwo.com/ntv or on DStv Namibia channel 285 or GOtv channel 25.
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