DÉCINES-CHARPIEU, FRANCE (AFP) – Rugby World Cup minnows Uruguay and Namibia clash in Lyon tonight in their own personal “final” where the winner takes home the glory and the loser faces four years of frustration.

Plumped into a tough Pool ‘A’ with three-time champions New Zealand, hosts France and Tier 1 Italy, this match always presented the most realistic hopes for both sides to win a game at the tournament.

And even more so for a Namibia side playing in its seventh World Cup that still searching for a first victory after 25 defeats in as many matches.

Head coach Allister Coetzee has been forced into making eight changes from the team demolished 96-0 by France last time out, with regular captain Johan Deysel suspended after his red card for a headbutt that broke France captain Antoine Dupont’s cheekbone.

But Coetzee also has a host of players missing through injury.

“It’s tough to play four matches in 18 days for any Tier II country, we don’t have a lot of depth,” complained the South African.

“But I must say our players have really stepped up. I call them warriors because it’s really not easy, some teams get 12 days or 13 days off between games.”

There is an extra motivation to finally end their World Cup hoodoo after their best chance of winning a match four years ago in Japan was taken away when their game against Canada was cancelled due to a typhoon. The importance of this match is not lost on either coach or players.

“The players know that a game like this and what a win means for the country can change a lot,” said Coetzee.

“So we’ll pitch up tomorrow (tonight). It’s important for us to get over that final hurdle, there’s a lot at stake for us.”

Winning will not be straightforward against a Uruguay side that has impressed in France.

While Namibia shipped a total of 219 points in their first three matches, the South Americans were competitive in defeats to France (27-12) and Italy (38-17).

“Uruguay has only won three games in all the history of the Rugby World Cup, and this adds perhaps some pressure on our side,” said captain Andres Vilaseca.

“We must accept this as there are a lot of people talking about the good performances we are having at this Rugby World Cup.

“We’ve received very nice messages too, but the truth is that if we do not win against Namibia we wouldn’t confirm this great progress.

“For us it is a final and for them too, it is going to be a very interesting match.”

The two sides have met five times before with Uruguay winning four of those, including a World Cup warm-up in August.

SYDNEY (AFP) – Former Wallabies captain Stirling Mortlock has said “the worst thing” Rugby Australia can do is sack embattled head coach Eddie Jones, despite the team’s poor World Cup campaign.

Two-time champions Australia are on the verge of being knocked out in the pool stage of a World Cup for the first time after being routed 40-6 by Wales on Monday and following a shock defeat to Fiji.

Jones was appointed head coach in January, and Australia have lost seven of their eight games since.

The hammering by the Welsh saw Australia drop to their all-time lowest ranking of 10th in the world. Mortlock described Monday’s defeat as a “train wreck”, but urged rugby chiefs to back Jones to take the young Wallabies squad through to the next World Cup, hosted by Australia in 2027.

“As a coach and a leader, he’s unaccountable and he says that,” Mortlock told the BBC’s Rugby Union Daily podcast. “I respect him, in every sense of the word, that he wears it.

“The worst thing that Australia could do is suddenly get rid of him and say ‘no, you’re not the best man for the job’ only after six months or whatever it has been.

“Back your man – you picked him for a reason.

“It was all about building for an amazing runway in the next four years,” Mortlock added, with Australia hosting the British and Irish Lions in 2025 before a World Cup two years later on home soil.

Following the defeat to Wales in Lyon, Jones apologised for the result but denied Australian media reports claiming he had been interviewed by the Japan Rugby Union about coaching their team after the World Cup.

Jones has been criticised for bringing an inexperienced Wallabies squad to France.

“He rolled the dice with youth for this World Cup campaign. I actually respect that,” added Mortlock, 46, who played 80 Tests for Australia, 29 as captain.

“But the flip side is, it doesn’t work quickly, which it normally doesn’t with young players.

“You need time to play together to build up combinations and cohesion.”

PARIS (AFP) – Fly-half Jack Crowley said Scotland will not be taken lightly by Ireland even if the Irish are expected to beat them in their final Pool ‘B’ match on October 7 and secure their place in the quarter-finals.

Crowley is likely to be captain Johnny Sexton’s understudy again – in preference to the more experienced Ross Byrne – after impressing in cameo appearances in the 82-8 romp against Romania and the 13-8 win over South Africa last Saturday.

The Irish top the pool with 14 points but could still lose out on a last-eight spot if they end up in a three-way tie with Scotland and the Springboks.

The statistics are stacked in Ireland’s favour – they are on a record run of 16 successive Test wins and have won their last eight meetings with the Scots.

“I suppose they are going to grow throughout the competition aren’t they?” said Crowley.

“We have come up against them in the Six Nations and they have been one of the toughest competitors you come up against because of the way they play as well, so the game plan again is going to be different compared to the South Africa game.

“So our eyes are firmly on them. Recovering this week, preparation is massive from Wednesday to Sunday and then back into the game week.” The 23-year-old Munster playmaker has been marked out for great things by both Irish legend Ronan O’Gara and Australia’s 1999 World Cup-winning fly-half Stephen Larkham.

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) – Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr said yesterday he is confident of remaining with the club despite not yet signing an extension to his existing contract.

Kerr, who has led the Warriors to four NBA championships since taking over as coach in 2014, is entering the final year of his contract when the 2023/2024 season tips off at the end of October.

The 57-year-old told reporters on Monday however that he is relaxed about inking a new deal in the future, confident he can come to an agreement with owner Joe Lacob and new General Manager Mike Dunleavy Jr.

“I feel great about my position here,” Kerr said. “I want to be here. I know Mike and Joe want me here, and so I’m very confident something will get done. I’m not stressed about it at all.”

Kerr added there was no question of uncertainty about his long-term contract status unsettling him during the season.

“You know, I’m perfectly capable of coaching whether I have one year left or an extension,” Kerr said. “Makes no difference. But I fully expect to be here.”

Dunleavy meanwhile said the Warriors were comfortable to bide their time before tying Kerr and star player Klay Thompson to new deals. Thompson is also entering the final year of his current contract.

“There’s no real timeline in the immediate future that we have to abide by, so we’ll continue to have conversations,” Dunleavy said.

“But the main goal is secure those guys moving forward, and I think they feel a little bit of the same. But we are optimistic, and I think we are in a good place there.”

The Warriors have bolstered their roster for the upcoming season with the addition of veteran 12-time All-Star Chris Paul, who signed from Phoenix.

Kerr said the 38-year-old had already made an impression during the off-season.

“I really like Chris because he likes phone calls and not texts,” said Kerr. “Chris is old school. He wants to talk.

“We’ve had four or five great conversations this summer.

“Obviously we have had a lot of battles over the years.

“So I’m thrilled to coach him. He’s one of the greatest competitors I’ve ever seen; his command of the game, the way he controls the action. He understands what wins.

“So I’m really excited to coach Chris and I know he’s really excited to be here.”

HANGZHOU (AFP) – Racquet-smashing South Korean tennis player Kwon Soon-woo wrote a letter of apology yesterday for his spectacular meltdown following a shock defeat at the Asian Games.

Thailand’s lower-ranked Kasidit Samrej stunned Kwon 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 in the men’s singles second round in Hangzhou on Monday, triggering a furious response from the 25-year-old South Korean.

Pictures went viral of him smacking his racquet on the court nine times at the end of the match, destroying it, and then snubbing concerted efforts by his victorious opponent to shake hands.

Kwon, ranked 112 in the world to his opponent’s 636 and a hot favourite for a medal, was widely condemned at home in South Korea. He has since visited Thailand’s training camp and apologised, Yonhap news agency said, citing the Korea Tennis Association.

His apology was reportedly accepted. The Korean Sport and Olympic Committee released a hand-written letter of apology by Kwon, who has two ATP titles to his name.

In his letter, Kwon said he regretted what he called “a careless act”. “I sincerely apologise to all the Korean people who support the national team and to the fans at the stadium. I’m sorry,” he wrote.

“I once again sincerely apologise to Samrej, who would have been offended by my rude behaviour. I sincerely regret it and am reflecting on my actions after the match.”

MADRID (AFP) – Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti dismissed doubts about his team and tactical set-up yesterday after they fell to their first defeat of the season in the Madrid derby.

Los Blancos won their first six games, five in La Liga and one in the Champions League, but were comfortably beaten 3-1 by rivals Atletico Madrid on Sunday at the Metropolitano.

“I have to evaluate things with balance, equilibrium is important – luckily in my genetics I have that,” Ancelotti told a news conference.

“Putting everything in doubt when you’ve won six games out of seven, it seems a bit rash.”

The coach said Madrid needed to be self-critical after stumbling against Atletico but that he had made “a different evaluation” to many of his critics.