Green takes helm of Namibia Rugby Ltd – ready to plough back
The Namibia Rugby Ltd this week announced the appointment of Mervin Green as its Chief Executive Officer with immediate effect.
Green was a professional rugby player from 1980 to 1988, and then moved into coaching and administration, becoming the Vice-Chairman of South Africa Rugby Schools Association (SARU) by 1997. He was also a SARU senior manager where his responsibilities included drafting policies and strategies.
Green has also directed a number of junior tournaments and teams and most recently, he was general manager of Strategic Transformation at SARU.
Internationally, Green currently holds the position of General Secretary of Rugby Africa where he provides strategic guidance in terms of developing the game on the continent. He also regularly represents SARU and Rugby Africa at World Rugby General Council meetings and conferences.
Furthermore, the Namibia Rugby Ltd is a newly registered entity and will work closely with the Namibia Rugby Union. The company has been established to look after the well being of all national teams, the senior national team; Windhoek Draught Welwitschias; Namibia Under 20s and Namibia National Sevens team.
“There is a lot of work to be done. It is only fair that he commences with the duties he has been appointed for. I am sure that we have made the right choice in appointing him because his previous working success in other countries can testify to that,” Bradley Basson, the president of Namibia Rugby Union said.
Basson futher added that Green was instrumental in negotiating and liaising with national and provincial ministries and various forums on the subject of transformation in South African rugby reporting directly to the CEO.
Thanking the management on his appointment, Green said that he sees the new phase Namibian rugby is entering as an exciting challenge. “I have gained knowledge through years of experience in the game and am ready to plough back by making a difference in Namibia,” he said.
Meanwhile, adding adding on to the value of local rugby, is Peter Handing, who is seconded to Namibia by World Rugby as the general manager of High Performance until the end of World Cup 2019.
Harding will bring in depth knowledge and skills on running world class high performance systems and structures.
According to Harding, his experience as lead for the strength and conditioning for, amongst others, the English Institute of Sport in London and Qantas Wallabies earned him acclaimed position of high performance consultant at World Rugby.
“Setting up a functional high performance structure in Namibia will be beneficial to all national teams in many facts of the game for years to come. And I am honored to be part of the team,” Haring said.
