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Coach Davies hails Namibian rugby as on the rise

By Nick Said

LEICESTER, England (Reuters) - Namibia coach Phil Davies believes the Rugby World Cup has been a triumph for his side no matter what happens in their final Pool C fixture against Argentina at the Leicester City Stadium on Sunday.

The African side claimed their first World Cup point in the 17-16 loss to Georgia on Wednesday, having put in far more competitive performances than in previous years.

"It’s gone really well," Davies told reporters on Saturday. “In fact, if you look at our performance curve going all the way back to July, our performances against both tier one and tier two nations have improved quite dramatically.

“We have been able to give opportunities to young players, which was important to us. I cannot fault the effort, commitment, courage and determination of the players, it’s been superb."

The end of this tournament will provide a watershed for the side with the international retirement of experienced campaigners such as captain Jacques Burger, and props Jaco Engels and Johnny Redelinghuys.

Welshman Davies is also unsure of his future, but hinted he would like to stay on to continue to build on the "fantastic" structures the Namibia Rugby Union has put in place to grow the game in the country.

“Namibian rugby is on the up, there is no doubt about that,” he said. “We have very good young players in the squad, a great president (Bradley Basson), who is very prominent, and a fantastic technical team.

“We have challenges of course, but for me it is important we keep the stability and be consistent in how we manage the game.

"I have one more match to negotiate and then I will talk to a lot of people, the president and the players, about what is best for Namibian rugby going forward."

Davies believes that to continue on the upward curve Namibia needs a more comprehensive international fixture list, greater focus on the club game and a return to playing third tier provincial rugby in South Africa.

"To move forward we need a consistent test calendar and good provincial competition to give the players something to aspire to," he said.

(Editing by Julien Pretot)