Nashixwa off to a good start in South Africa

A product of the MTC HopSol Youth League, Tuli-Ngenovali Nashixwa is now competing in the South African Premier Soccer League after recently joining Richards Bay.
The 23-year-old Namibian defensive midfielder made his debut for Richards Bay in the Nedbank Cup against Siwelele, coming on in the 65th minute last week.
The match ended 3-3, and Nashixwa was among the penalty takers and scored.

Stepping up for the penalty kick, I was very nervous at first because it was an away game. The home team’s crowd was making so much noise. I was taking a decisive penalty where, if I missed, we were out of the cup, but my team had full trust in me, especially cause the day before we had practiced penalties. I was one of a few players who didn’t miss, so I was nervous but I trusted myself and I’m just glad I could help my team advance to the next round,

– he said.

Nashixwa started his Hopsol journey in 2017 when it was launched, playing for Ramblers Football Club U/15. He played in the Hopsol league for four years, reaching three finals.

I only managed to win it once in my final year playing Hopsol, which was in 2020 with Ramblers FC for the U/19 age group. I also received the MVP (Most Valuable Player) award that year for the league, which resulted in my first-ever youth call-up to the national team,

– he noted.
The talented defensive midfielder started playing in the first division for Ramblers Football Club to get used to playing with older, more experienced players, which helped him develop.

I ended up signing first for Unam Football Club in 2022, but internal situations caused me not to stay for long, which ended in me signing for Tigers Football Club in the Namibian Premier League in 2023, where I played for two seasons and got a big move to the defending champions of the league, African Stars, for the 2025/2026 season,

– Nashixwa said.

“My stay wasn’t long, as I only featured for African Stars for half of the season, where I impressed and got a big move to my current team, Richard Bay Football Club in the South African Premiership,

– he added.

Here now… Tuli-Ngenovali Nashixwa now plays for Richards Bay.

He said:

I have been settling in really well. The players are friendly and welcoming. It’s a very young squad, so it’s easier to feel comfortable. Even with the language barrier, the players still make me feel at home and try in every way to make me feel welcome.

Nashixwa donned his national colours for the junior national team in 2020, where they played in the Cosafa tournament and reached the final, which they lost 1-0 to Mozambique, but made history by qualifying for the youth Afcon for the first time in the country’s history.

For my senior call-up, it was in 2022 again for Cosafa, where we again went to the final but did manage to win as we lost 1-0 against Zambia.
Then I got a few call ups after that for Afcon qualifiers and Fifa qualifiers, being in the final squad but not managing to play much, only two games, and then I got my chance to play, which was again in a Cosafa Tournament in 2024, where we went to the final once again but couldn’t get past the final hurdle of lifting the trophy and lost to Angola,

– he said.

Brave Warriors coach and technical director of the MTC HopSol Youth League Collin Benjamin said being a product of the HopSol youth league means the platform was created to help Namibia unearth talent even for international leagues.

As a coach, I believe that, the more players we have in foreign leagues and competing in weekly competitions, the stronger our national team will become. Nashixwa has been part of the national team since 2022. He has to work even harder than before to stay in the ranks and get even better. We all know it’s easy to get in, but difficult to stay in. However, it’s a wonderful situation because it’s all in his hands. He is smart and a hard worker. We wish him all the best,

– he noted.

Getting another call-up will definitely be an honor. I always dreamed of playing for my country – but right now, my focus is on continuing to work hard and play as much as I can. If I get a call-up again, it will be an honor.

Strauss Lunyangwe

Captions:
Photo 1: On the move… Tuli-Ngenovali Nashixwa once donned the colours for Tigers FC.
Photo 2: Starlile… The defensive midfielder played for Namibia Premier League defending champions, African Stars, for the 2025/2026 season.
Photo 3: Relax… Tuli-Ngenovali Nashixwa calms players on the field.

Photos: Contributed