The Sunday News
New Zealand coach Steve Hansen hailed Namibia for “giving everything they could give” and admitted his team had struggled to deal with the stop-start nature of the game in their 58-14 victory in the ongoing rugby World Cup tournament in England on Thursday.
“We have got to deal with it better than we did,” the New Zealand coach said. “At one stage it took four minutes to have a scrum. I’m not sure how to deal with it, but we have to find a way.” Hansen was frustrated by the lengthy TMO delays too, adding: “We have said that right from the beginning that if someone commits foul play we need to know about it. But you would like it to be sped up a little bit if they can.”
New Zealand’s captain, Sam Cane, agreed. “When the game is so stop-start, you try to speak to the ref but it’s a bit frustrating, I just want to play some footie.”
But Hansen praised Namibia, who he said were worthy opponents despite their lowly world ranking. “I am really happy for Namibia, they are a good bunch of guys and I thought they acquitted themselves commendably,” he said.
“When they got tired near the end of the game it became quite messy, that is what you expect, but early in the game they committed themselves totally to the breakdown and the tackle and they should be really proud of themselves. They were worthy opponents. They gave everything they could give.”
The Namibia captain Jacques Burger, whose bloodied eyes and nose made him looked like a prizefighter in his post-match press conference, also paid tribute to his team. “We are a brave bunch of guys, who fight to the very end,” he said. “I am massively proud.” — the Guardian
