Black Stallions Coach Steve Lewis Advocates for Regular Competition, Promises Improved Performance in Second Leg of Africa Rugby 7s Nations Cup
Steve Lewis, the coach of Nigeria’s senior men’s national rugby team, the Black Stallions, has emphasized the need for regular competition to enhance the team’s performance. In an interview with Rugby Africa’s media team, Lewis highlighted the challenges the team faced due to the integration of eight new caps and the diverse origins of the players.
“The team is coming into the competition with eight new caps from different parts of the world,” Lewis explained. “We have four players from Nigeria: Christopher Daniel John, Etim Gabriel, Sam Esukuloh Prince, and Akpabio Samuel. Six players from the United Kingdom: Dodo Boluwatife, Richard Adeniyi-Jones, Olaboye Faisal Ayomide, Ilube Matthew, Obano Oghenesuvwe Osereme, Kitto Oliver Lewis, and Anthony John-Oluwatobiloba. One from the United States: Henry-Ajudua Frederick, and one from South Africa: Odunlami Oluwadara. This diversity affected our performance, but with one more week together to build bonds, the second leg will be different.”
Lewis acknowledged the difficulties faced due to the lack of time to blend the new players with the regulars. “We are coming into this tournament with eight new caps, and we didn’t have enough time to blend because some flew in from Nigeria, some from the United Kingdom, one from the United States, and one from South Africa. Five of our regulars couldn’t make it to this tournament, which really affected our team chemistry. But we hope to get better, especially as we look forward to the second leg.”
He also stressed the importance of regular competitions for the team’s development. “Competitions like these are good for us. They help the team to understand each other better, and we can leverage our performance to build something great going forward.”
Lewis further mentioned the need to evolve a game plan that suits the resources available to the team for future games. “We will develop a game plan that aligns with the resources at our disposal ahead of subsequent games.”
Nigeria finished tenth in the first leg, a drop of two places from their previous eighth-place finish. However, the team has been working on improving their performance by addressing the grey areas noticed in the first leg. They have increased their training time to improve team cohesion and have been analyzing match videos with the assistance of a video analyst to enhance their strategies.
With these efforts, the Black Stallions are aiming for a stronger performance in the second leg of the Africa Nations Cup.
