Black Stallions must beat Mauritius to qualify, says Jatto

With the landslide victory of Morocco over Mauritius in their first game of the Africa Cup 1C, a member of the Nigeria Rugby team to the 2019 pre-World Cup qualifiers in Morocco, Onoru Jatto says a win against Mauritius today is non-negotiable if they were to stand any chance of advancing to the group stage.

Speaking after their first training session in Casablanca, Morocco, Onoru who plays as the centre for the Black Stallions, reasoned that since the Moroccans won by 68 points to three against Mauritius, Nigeria must defeat Mauritius before they face Morocco in their last game.

He emphasized that the team had great prospects of progressing from Cup 1C to 1B and book a place in the group stage of the 2019 Rugby World Cup qualifier. “First, I think we need to win the first game against Mauritius on Wednesday.

“It’s going to be a must win game against Morocco because both teams need to win that game. So it is going to be a tough game.“I think if we do what we need to do, we will come out on top with the result and we will be able to get up to 1B,” he concluded.

Meanwhile, one of the two foreign professionals in the team, Christian Ogar, who plays for Belhar Rugby Football Club of South Africa, says the team comprising mostly new boys, needs to stick together and work for a common purpose.

Ogar stated that after two weeks of intensive training in Lagos before their departure to Morocco,  their mission is to fight for the division 1B ticket and brighten their World Cup qualification chances.“I am going to give my best to the team to ensure that we move on to the next level,” he pledged.