Reaction from Uruguay scrum-half Santiago Arata, captain Andres Vilaseca and head coach Esteban Meneses following their 36-26 win against Namibia
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ON-FIELD REACTION
Santiago Arata, Mastercard Player of the Match
On the win:
"First victory for us (at Rugby World Cup 2023), really proud of the tournament. I want to say thank you to all the Uruguayans, massive support. This victory is for them."
On his try:
"It is all the team, I am happy as I didn't make the last game, I am just happy.
On New Zealand:
"Next team is a tough game, we can't rest, we need to focus for the next game."
Andres Vilaseca, captain
On the future of the country's rugby:
"I am very proud. We had to win. I think the whole group deserves the victory and we have been working so hard. Uruguay only had three wins in the history, today we got the fourth, the whole union needed the win."
On South American rugby:
"We know we play for our country and for the region. We are growing at such a fast speed with Chile and Argentina. We have been working very hard since the 2015 World Cup. I am so happy for the group."
On the half-time team talk:
"We knew for Namibia it was the final for them too. It was a really tough battle, the objective was to keep pushing and keep building to the win."
Esteban Meneses, head coach
On his pride for his team:
"The players are incredible, I am very proud of them. Namibia are a very tough team in the contact. They have very fast backs. We made the difference in the lineout, maul and scrum."
On New Zealand next out:
"All the players and staff want to play against them, it is a very good opportunity to play against New Zealand."
