National pride at stake

Namibians are bursting with national pride ahead of what can only be described as a big weekend for the nation's sport. Headlining the proceedings will be our undisputed world champion Julius 'Blue Machine' Indongo, who will face off against the hard-hitting American pugilist Terence Crawford at the Pinnacle Bank Arena in Nebraska. Indongo will put his IBF and WBA titles on the line against Crawford, who is the holder of the WBC and WBO titles. By Sunday morning, we will know who the undisputed super-lightweight king is. It will be a big moment for both boxers who are at this point in time considered as the best fighters in their division. Indongo has an excellent career as an amateur fighter and has always been poised for greatness – a feat that was underlined when he outclassed Russia's Eduard Troyanovsky in the first rounds in December last year to capture the IBF title. He further proved his formidable skills to the world when he cruised to a points victory over Scottish boxer Ricky Burns in Glasgow, landing the WBA world title. Indongo has to be at his very best when he comes up against the one of the world's most recognised boxers. Indongo's opponent oozes talent and he is a hard hitter in his own right. Meanwhile, back home the Brave Warriors could also make history this weekend by qualifying for their first ever African Nations Championship that will play out in Kenya next year. The Ricardo Mannetti side must first beat the Comoros on Sunday at the Sam Nujoma Stadium to realise this dream. The players are aware that no other result would matter against Comoros except victory. Last weekend Namibia lost 2-1 away in Comoros in the first leg and desperately need to clinch the tie this time around to confirm their place at CHAN finals next year. The win will indeed be a massive boost for our football, which has been trapped in victimhood since the Namibia Premier League (NPL) failed to start last season due to funding and governance problems.