Placido Hilukilwa<\/p>\n\n\n\n
RUGBY, a relatively unfamiliar sports code for many in the northern regions, is currently making waves, and the Oshana Gymnasium \u2014 a private school in Ongwediva, Oshana Region \u2014 serves as the epicentre of the surge and the grooming of young rugby players.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With its excellent sports facilities, the 20-month-old school attracts rugby players from other schools in the area and has already produced a player, Ian Smith, for the national Under-12 team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to the school’s sports coordinator, Stephen Nyamuzingu, the northern regions, where rugby has practically been absent for many years, are a treasure chest of talents and “unearthed diamonds.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He said: “If in less than two years we have already produced a national rugby player, just imagine how many more excellent players we can produce in years to come.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to him, the school’s sports development programme currently has three rugby teams, namely the Under-11, the Under-13, and the Under-15.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nyamuzingu said that by hosting rugby matches and attracting players from local schools, they hope to rekindle the community’s interest in and support for rugby, which is a wonderful sports code that was neglected or simply ignored in the past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Last month, the Oshana Gymnasium hosted a match between the Oshana Rugby Club and the Grootfontein Rugby Club, the first rugby match in the Oshana Region in more than a decade. The visitors won narrowly, 35 to 28.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Ministry of Education and the Namibia Rugby Union play a crucial role in the promotion of rugby in schools, clubs, and communities to create awareness and love of the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
PICTURED: Ian Smith, Oshana Gymnasium learner who now plays for the national Under-12 rugby team. Photos: Oshana Gymnasium<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Placido Hilukilwa RUGBY, a relatively unfamiliar sports code for many in the northern regions, is currently making waves, and the Oshana Gymnasium \u2014 a private school in Ongwediva, Oshana Region \u2014 serves as the epicentre of the surge and the grooming of young rugby players. With its excellent sports facilities, the 20-month-old school attracts rugby …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":380626,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-380621","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\n