Namibia have never won a Rugby World Cup match in 16 attempts. The closest they came was a 32-17 loss to Ireland in 2007 but this could be their year.
The competition has seen one of the biggest upsets in the history of the sport when Japan beat twice-winners South Africa, and the team Namibia face on Tuesday, Tonga, were also stunned 17-10 by lower-ranked Georgia in their opening fixture.
"It remains our goal to win -- it's not impossible," captain Jacques Burger told reporters.
"We know how tough Tonga are as a rugby side. We want to win. Not to compete, but to win."
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Burger's squad which includes a dentist, some farmers and a diamond trader, put up an admirable fight against champions New Zealand in their opening Group C match, scoring a try in a 58-14 defeat.
It was a result that showed, like so many others in the tournament, the gulf between the second-tier teams and the top flight is narrowing. Twelve years ago, Namibia were on the wrong end of the biggest ever defeat, a 142-0 trouncing by Australia in Adelaide.
This sense that even the minnows can put on a good show is one of the reasons that the first match at the 12,500 capacity stadium in England's rugby-mad south west is a sell-out.
Exeter played host to New Zealand's first match in Britain in 1905, and will also be the setting for World Cup pool matches between Namibia and Georgia, and Italy and Romania.
As the tournament approaches the half-way mark of the pool stages, nearly a million people have attended matches -- firmly on course for a Rugby World Cup record.
The crowd at Sandy Park, probably the most intimate venue of the tournament, could make all the difference for the Namibians if they sense another upset.
(Editing by Ed Osmond)
