Germany eye Safland trophy Team expected to be competitive in Swakopmund SPORT REPORTERThe European side will be one of the strongest contenders at the Safland Sevens rugby tournament, which will be held in Swakopmund next month.
Team Germany is expected to be a very popular – and competitive – side in the second annual Safland Sevens rugby tournament, which will be held in Swakopmund on 12 and 13 November.
Germany has accepted the invitation alongside the national teams of Namibia, South Africa, United States, Zambia, Kenya, Zimbabwe and others who will be testing their skills in the upcoming spectacle.
With the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series due to kick off three weeks later in Dubai, all will be looking to impress at the Namibian coastal town.
Many casual observers might still under-estimate Germany, given that the country is not synonymous with rugby.
However, their sevens team has already earned the respect of those in the know as they narrowly missed out on Olympic qualification, among other notable performances over the last two years.
Germany sevens team manager Manuel Wilhelm was there when the national sevens programme began three years ago, setting up a national team training base in Heidelberg.
“At the beginning we got together about 20 players to start the programme, all amateurs and students, but we at least managed to get a good training routine where they would train every day before going to work or university.
“We had boys move to Heidelberg from all around Germany for the chance to be part of the programme.”
With the financial backing of German billionaire Hans-Peter Wild, the national rugby academy was established in the city which included bringing coaches in to run the show.
Olympic challenge
Germany’s fourth-place finish at the 2016 Olympic Repecharge tournament in Monaco was another good indication of its standing in the international game.
“We were a bit unlucky in Monaco as we had to play the semi-final against Samoa with only nine players, due to injuries.
“We had a couple of good results in the past and we’ve been building nicely over the last four years. At the end Spain won it, a team we had beaten just one week before during the first round of the European Grand Prix Series,” says Wilhelm.
Wilhelm has invited fans in Namibia who may be considering making the trip to Swakopmund to come enjoy the spectacle.
“We are super proud to be part of this tournament and it will be a nice experience to come to Namibia as our countries have a long history.
‘We know it will be very tough playing against the top teams from Africa, but we’ll do our best to make a good name of ourselves.”
The team is currently coached by New Zealand-born Chad Shepherd (former Hawke’s Bay scrumhalf).
He was the assistant coach in 2014-2015 and took over from long-serving ex-player Rainer Kumm as head coach in 2016.
Kumm had to step down because of family reasons.