The Ivorian XV will face Namibia, Saturday July 3, 2021 at the Lycée d’Excellence Alassane Ouattara in Grand-Bassam, as part of the qualifiers for the “Rugby Africa Cup”.
Namibia, the elephants’ first opponent on July 3, is a scarecrow in African rugby. She has consistently qualified for the World Cup since 1999.
With a very physical game, strong and tough players, like their South African neighbors, the Namibians dominate the continent and once again demonstrated it in the last African Cup final by crushing Kenya (53-28) in 2018.
Ranked 24th world nation in the World Rugby ranking, the Welwitschias (their nickname) are based on a base of players participating in the Currie Cup and therefore experienced in high level games.
The rugby elephants believe in their abilities and their chance to successfully negotiate this confrontation on Ivorian soil.
“We have worked hard for this competition. We remain confident and we will bet on our strength, the collective to try to overcome Namibia ”, reassured the versatile pillar of the Ivorian team, Christian Sahin, who launched for the occasion an appeal to supporters to make many trips to Grand-Bassam to support the rugby elephants.
All the matches in Pool A of these Rugby Africa Cup 2021 qualifiers will be played in Grand Bassam, at the Lycée d’Excellence Alassane Ouattara. The first two pool will qualify for the Top 8 which will be contested in 2022 in the form of quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals. The winner will represent the African continent at the 2023 World Cup in France.
Source: Agence Ivoirienne de presse