Future looks bright as Bulls edge thriller

The future of Namibian rugby looks bright after the new-look Welwitschias Invitational team lost a thriller 50-47 to the Vodacom Blue Bulls on Saturday.

With about 90 percent of the squad made up of local-based players and an average age of about 25, the Welwitschias dug deep as they ran a strong Bulls outfit close in a match that went down to the wire.

The Bulls, who featured about half of their recently named Currie Cup squad, as well as upcoming u23 players, threatened to run away with the match as they built up commanding leads, but the Welwitschias played with passion and pride and fought back each time. The Welwitschias, in fact, were on the verge of a great victory when they took a 47-43 lead in the dying minutes, but the Bulls had the final say as a last minute try by Melt Viljoen gave them a narrow win.

In a tremendous match of fluctuating fortunes, the Welwitschias opened the scoring with a Wiks Tromp penalty but the Bulls immediately struck back with a try by flanker Abongile Nonkontwana converted by Keegan Johannes.