The Sunday Mail
SABLES gaffer Cyprian “Supa” Mandenge says he is resorting to “crash programs” as his wish of having players in camp for long is not being met.
The senior men’s rugby team troops back into camp today to begin preparations for Saturday’s Africa Cup clash against Tunisia at Prince Edward School.
Despite dismissing Kenya 28-20 at the same venue earlier this month the Sables are under pressure to put on a better show as there were elements of sloppiness during the first match.
However, Mandenge maintains his charges did well under the circumstances.
“Contrary to public opinion I believe my boys played extremely well during the victory over Kenya considering the challenges we faced.
“Yes, there are a couple of areas that we still need to work on, like their levels of concentration and their fitness, but what you need to understand is that it was our first time together,” he said.
“We only had a week together as a unit and that forced us to employ a crash program which affected the team’s performance. I do understand that it boils down to resources, but the week-long camps are simply not ideal at this level and the boys are doing the best they can.”
A welcome selection dilemma awaits the gaffer as a full complement of players is expected with most of the absentees from the Kenya clash available.
The likes of flankers Jacques Leitao and Njabulo Ncube, eighth-man Norman Mukondiwa, Kelvin Nqindi and Nico Nyemba are available for selection.
The four were the chief absentees from the Kenya tie, having withdrawn due to work commitments.
Mandenge’s biggest headache is balancing his team.
“It’s a tricky situation that we find ourselves in,” he admitted.
“The obvious temptation is to bolster the team by putting the best players on the pitch. However, we have no way of verifying which of those work commitments claims were legit and which of those were players who abandoned their team.
“As a technical committee we have a strong desire to reward those that put their country first and represented the country with distinction,” said Mandenge.
