ZRU President, Themba Sibanda, said a recent upward movement in the international rankings by the team, as well as a solid foundation laid for the development of the sport, buoyed confidence that Zimbabwe will once again be among the world’s best teams in the sport.
The Sables have been on a roll lately. Their 49-21 victory against Uganda in Bulawayo in the Victoria Cup last week capped a successful few weeks that saw them climb to a new high of 39th in the IRB World Rankings.
It lifted them nine places and into the top 40 nations for the first time, a sign that things are beginning to change, with rugby in Zimbabwe only now starting to re-establish itself after a downward spiral that coincided with the country's social and economic woes.
“We are in great shape at the moment and we are looking good at all levels. One can see here that the schools are vibrant, our women's team is coming up, our Sevens national team is travelling and competing in three IRB tournaments over the year and our 15s have started playing games again so it is vibrant at the moment and we're looking strong,” Sibanda said in an interview.
He expressed confidence that Zimbabwe would be among the nations competing in the World Cup in four years.
Zimbabwe last played at the tournament in 1991. Back then, it went to the second Rugby World Cup ranked number two in Africa behind only South Africa.
It will not play in the same tournament in New Zealand in September because of its lowly ranking.
Post published in: Rugby