Black Gold

Source: This article is taken from the September 2011 issue of Sports Illustrated.

Its quite simple, really. We at Sports Illustrated believe that transformation needs to start at school level. So we’re chuffed to report that despite the lack of focused funding and extramural development programmes, this year’s Craven Week yielded a ton of talented black rugby players – especially among the tight forwards.

“The fundamental question is: what have we done as federations to develop talent?” Sports Minister Fikile Mbalula asked in April. “I can say without any doubt that we have done zilch,” was his own answer.

Mbalula’s public relations talk is nothing new for politicians, and as he’s admitted, neither the government nor any sports development programmes have had much to do with the growth of promising players. The schools do the most work in producing top rugby players, and judging by this year’s Craven Week, those players are coming through on merit.

In the initial stages of the quota system and transformation, wing was the position seemingly reserved for black players. At senior level, matters are changing more slowly – which is natural, as the talent still needs to be developed – but at schools level, black players occupy jerseys 1 to 15.

A notable feature of this year’s Craven Week in Kimberley was the number of quality black tight forwards coming through. Selborne College’s pack is much-vaunted on the schoolboy circuit after their win over Monument and draw with Grey Bloem, and two thirds of the front row are black. Hooker and captain Siphatho Qinisile and loosehead Yakha Qinela were joined by flanker Siphesihle Punguzwa in the Border Craven Week team, while No 8 Kwezhi Mona played last year.

The Bulls had the most feared forwards in Kimberley, and while two of their black heavies only started from the bench, that says much about the strength of the starting eight.

Lock Duren Fielies and front-ranker Dayan van der Westhuizen are highly rated by former Stormers lock Thys Stoltz, who was a consultant for Waterkloof earlier this year and works for the South African Rugby Players’ Association (SARPA).

“Dayan is still in Grade 11 and has fantastic ability,” says Stoltz. “He’s more of a loosehead than a tighthead, but if someone works on his throwing, he could be a very good hooker. With his mobility, he could be a real livewire; you could see that by the two tries he scored against Boland. He has a bright future ahead of him, and is a fantastic prospect for schools rugby next year and in terms of a professional career.

“Duren has natural aerial abilities, and he reads the trajectory of the ball so well at the line-out. Quite a few universities and academies asked me about Duren at the Craven Week: there’s obviously interest in him. He’ll still grow physically and is a great athlete. He’ll go a long way if he goes to the correct union. Players must go somewhere where they’ll get opportunities to be on the park as much as possible while still developing.”

The trend of black tight forwards wasn’t confined to a couple of teams: the entire SWD front row of Bradley Jumaats, Brianton Booysen, and Blaine James (who also played Craven Week last year) helped beat hosts Griquas – who also had a strong pack which included Diamantveld’s prop and hooker Boetie Makhetlo, and Jean McLean. Bishops’ 108kg WP loosehead Tsepho Motale played SA Schools and SA U18 last year, but was left out of the national schools side this year. WP’s hooker was Paul Roos’ Chad Solomon.

If the Minister was serious about it government departments would send promising players to these schools on bursaries and improve facilities in rural areas.

KwaZulu-Natal’s Matthew Worral-Claire and Sanele Pina (both Glenwood), were also two of the better tightheads. “Pina was a hooker-come-loosehead at the start of the season,” says Glenwood and KZN coach Sean Erasmus, “but we’ve moved him to tighthead because we think he’s got potential there. He’s also got another chance next year to make Craven Week.

“It was my first year at Craven Week, but I’ve been involved in the selection for a while. In all that time guys were coming through on merit. We pick our best 22, and easily fill the numbers.

“It’s all about the strength of the players, and in KZN we have no issue at all. In our opening game against WP we picked our best side and we had many more than required. On the last day it was the same, which emphasises the point that it’s not an issue.

“It’s not a concern for the kids either. You don’t hear guys saying ‘I didn’t make the team because of this or that reason’. Nobody even mentions it; it’s not within the team dynamic.”

It’s easier for the coastal regions such as KwaZulu-Natal, Border, Eastern Province and Western Province to produce black players – the demographics of the country show that most black rugby players are in these regions.

In the case of Fielies and Van der Westhuizen, the Bulls brought them up from Boland. The Lions are also reliant on recruiting black players, but Free State produced Grey College’s flank Leneve Damons, who made the SA Schools team on merit.

Stoltz is adamant that schools are nurturing these players at a grassroots level and that quotas need no longer be an issue at age-group levels. The talent is there; Stoltz’s concern is that the coaching must match the ability.

“Quotas are always a controversial topic, but it’s fantastic for the players and SA rugby that they’re now coming through. We must just look at developing the coaching structures at schools in the country so we can continue to see them there on merit. My biggest concern is to get players and coaches to understand that players can’t just know everything – they must be coached properly.

“Watch (SWD and SA Schools scrumhalf) Percy Williams and you’ll see black players are just as hungry and willing as anyone else. It’s a slap in the face to call them quota or development players. These guys deserve their places; just look at a guy like (SA Schools flank) Thabo Mabuza and what he’s achieved in such a short space of time. In my opinion, he was by far one of the best loose forwards at Craven Week. These guys are there on merit.”

Mbalula’s goal is to develop black talent, and what’s clear is that schools are doing this job rugby-wise. If the minister was serious about it, government departments would send promising players to these schools on bursaries, and improve facilities in rural areas.

Transformation was always going to take time, and while there’s no guarantee that these players will all make it as pros (many Craven Week players, black and white, have never been heard of again), the young black forwards coming through are a clear indication that there’s plenty of talent at school level, and that quotas should be a thing of the past.