Kudus confirms director of rugby for 2025

Club rugby
Andrew Poolman
  • 1 Week Ago 31 October 2024
FNB Kudus Rugby Club this week unveiled Roger Thompson as their newly appointed director of rugby for the 2025 season.

The Walvis Bay club will be hoping that Thompson (41) can steer the blue jerseys towards more breakthrough successes, following their first team’s elimination at the semi-final stage of the 2023 and 2024 seasons of the Namibia Rugby Union’s Windhoek Lager premier league.

Thompson was the assistant coach of FNB Unam under Russel van Rooi during the just completed season, in which Unam’s first team finished top on the premier league log (77 points from 14 wins and two losses out of 16 matches), before losing the final 20-45 to FNB Wanderers.

Kudus finished third (62 points, 12 wins) before being stopped 24-49 by Wanderers in the semi-final.

As a former head coach of Namibia Under-20 during three of their most successful years (2015 to 2017) and defence coach of the senior national team to the 2015 Rugby World Cup, Thompson brings a strong pedigree to the Walvis Bay club’s brains trust.

“A couple of weeks ago I was contacted by one of the Kudus members, asking if I would be available to take up a position as head coach. I had to go back and speak to my wife and family and consider the offer, but it has always been a big prospect of mine to coach a team that has been growing season after season,” the former Namibia and FNB Western Suburbs centre explained in a video interview posted on Kudus’ social media.

“Having been a player here (at Kudus) and having coached against them, you can see the growth in the Kudus community. I want to contribute to what this team is becoming.

“I’ve had a wonderful time as a player at Kudus. The club has a rich tradition and culture. They have not reaped the benefit of a league title yet, but there has been glimpses of improvement each year. I told my wife I want to be a part of it. I know I can make a contribution to a certain extent.

“Kudus has a strong support base in Walvis Bay and in other parts of the country. The people behind the team keeps you accountable and keeps you in check. So it’s a good environment to grow in.

“We also have plans in place to strengthen the pathway for talented players from the coastal region to represent the country, as they put their hands up year after year.”