Namibia and Tonga will both be desperate for victory when they face off in their Pool C clash at Sandy Park in Exeter .
POOL C – Match #20 – Tonga vs Namibia  |
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| Overall Stats Tonga | vs | Overall Stats Namibia | ||
| Average Score : Tonga 20.00 vs 14.00 Namibia | ||||
| Games Played | 1 | Games Played | 1 | |
| *Games Won | 1 | *Games Won | 0 | |
| *Games Lost | 0 | *Games Lost | 1 | |
| Games Drawn | 0 | Games Drawn | 0 | |
| *Longest.Winning.Streak | 1 | *Longest.Winning.Streak | 0 | |
| *Longest Losing Streak | 0 | *Longest Losing Streak | 1 | |
| *Largest Points For | 20 | *Largest Points For | 14 | |
| *Largest Points Against | 14 | *Largest Points Against | 20 | |
| *Largest.Winning.Margin | 6 | *Largest.Winning.Margin | 0 | |
| *Largest Losing Margin | 0 | *Largest Losing Margin | -6 | |
| *Total Points For | 20 | *Total Points For | 14 | |
| *Avg Points For | 20 | *Avg Points For | 14 | |
| *Total Points Against | 14 | *Total Points Against | 20 | |
| *Avg Points Against | 14 | *Avg Points Against | 20 | |
| *Total Points Difference | 6 | *Total Points Difference | -6 | |
| *Avg Points Difference | 6.00 | *Avg Points Difference | -6.00 | |
| * = By Tonga | * = By Namibia | |||
| Past Meetings | |||||
| 24-May-97 | Namibia | 14 | 20 | Tonga | Windhoek, Namibia |
POSSIBLE RR World Rankings outcome on Result
TON (on 66.53 points) at a Neutral venue -vs- NAM (on 61.28 points) in a RWC match
| Possible Outcome | Rating Point Exchange |
New TON Rating |
New NAM Rating |
Will NAM overtake TON? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| If TON win by 1-15 points | 0.950 | 67.48 | 60.33 | No |
| If TON win by more than 15 | 1.425 | 67.95 | 59.86 | No |
| If result is a draw | 1.050 | 65.48 | 62.33 | No |
| If NAM win by 1-15 points | 3.050 | 63.48 | 64.33 | Yes |
| If NAM win by more than 15 | 4.575 | 61.95 | 65.86 | Yes |
Desperate sides are usually dangerous ones, so don’t be surprised if this is a high-scoring affair as both countries go in search of their first triumph at the tournament.
Tonga were on the wrong end of a 17-10 result to Georgia in their opener at Kingsholm, and Namibia suffered a 58-14 drubbing at the hands of defending champions New Zealand at the Olympic Stadium in London.
Before the start of the tournament, Tonga had high hopes of finishing in third place in their group, at least, as it would have secured them qualification for the 2019 World Cup in Japan.
But that defeat to Georgia has dented those hopes and they are now fully focused on finishing their remaining matches on a high.
Fly-half Kurt Morath, who will start on the bench in this clash, highlighted the importance of this fixture to the Ikale Tahi and said they have moved on from their loss to Georgia.
“With the tournament being so short, we just had to flush that away and start again really and move on to Namibia,” he said.
“The day after the game, we did a bit of a review, and it’s all about Namibia now.”
Like Georgia, Morath is expecting Namibia’s to pose a huge threat. Despite their defeat to New Zealand, the Welwitchias’ forwards were competitive in their opener.
“Namibia are forward-orientated and they’ve got some big boys in there,” added Morath.
“We will have to really be on our game, up front. The tier two nations now are catching up.
“The level is improving with professionalism. Everyone’s getting better, so it’s not surprising that the gap’s closing up a bit.”
For Namibia, victory will be significant as it will be their first ever triump at the Rugby World Cup.
Despite being nine places below Tonga in the rankings, Welwitchias head coach Phil Davies feels his side can cause an upset.
“The Tongans have a good rest and there is a lot of emotion flying round their squad,” he said.
“It will be physical. They are ranked eleventh in the world and we are ranked 20. That’s a huge difference and it will be a massive, massive challenge but we are relishing it.”
Davies believes he got his selection right for this clash and expects his replacements to have a huge say in the game’s outcome.
“It’s a case of managing the squad and keeping people fresh,” he added.
“We want some consistency and plenty of impact off the bench. Our selection policy is a little different from how it has been but we think it will help bring us that consistency.
“It’s a short turnaround after the New Zealand game. After that game there was inevitable excitement but this is a level-headed group and while we take a lot of heart from our display last week, I was a bit disappointed that we didn’t impose ourselves earlier.
“But the All Blacks have beaten a lot of tier-one sides by 50 points and we have a lot to be pleased about.”
The teams:
- Namibia: 15 Chrysander Botha, 14 Johan Tromp, 13 Danie Van Wyk, 12 Johan Deysel, 11 Russel Van Wyk, 10 Theuns Kotze, 9 Eneill Buitendag, 8 Renaldo Bothma, 7 Rohan Kitshoff, 6 Jacques Burger (c), 5 Tjiuee Uanivi, 4 Janco Venter, 3 Johannes Coetzee, 2 Torsten Van Jaarsveld, 1 Casper Viviers.
Replacements: 16 Louis van der Westhuizen, 17 Johnny Redelinghuys, 18 AJ De Klerk, 19 Tinus Du Plessis, 20 PJ Van Lill, 21 Damian Stevens, 22 Darryl De La Harpe, 23 David Philander.
- Tonga: 15 Vungakoto Lilo, 14 David Halaifonua, 13 Siale Piutau (co-captain), 12 Sione Piukala, 11 Fetu’u Vainikolo, 10 Latiume Fosita, 9 Sonatane Takulua, 8 Viliami Ma’afu (co-captain), 7 Jack Ram, 6 Sione Kalamafoni, 5 Joseph Tuineau, 4 Hale T Pole, 3 Sila Puafisi, 2 Aleki Lutui, 1 Soane Tonga’uiha.
Replacements: 16 Paula Ngauamo, 17 Tevita Mailau, 18 Halani Aulika, 19 Tukulua Lokotui, 20 Opeti Fonua, 21 Samisoni Fisilau, 22 Kurt Morath, 23 Telusa Veainu.
- Date: Tuesday, September 29
- Venue: Sandy Park, Exeter
- Kick-off: 16:45 local (15:45 GMT)
- Referee: Glen Jackson (New Zealand)
- Assistant referees: Chris Pollock (New Zealand), Federico Anselmi (Argentina)
- TMO: Ben Skeen (New Zealand)
- Full Pool Previews – Click Individual Pool Below
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