Ken Borland

It seems over the last couple of weeks that myself and my rugby writing colleagues have been speaking about transformation in rugby as much as we have been speculating over Heyneke Meyer’s final World Cup selection.

A common theme in these discussions has been that transformation is not so much about writing the wrongs of the past, but more about ensuring that Springbok rugby grows stronger and stronger; at the moment it is a minority sport in South Africa (however passionately it is supported) and it’s just common sense that taking the game to more communities will increase the talent base and therefore improve the standard of play.

There are about 500 000 rugby players in South Africa and, although the majority of those are undoubtedly White and Coloured, there are strong areas of Black representation. The Eastern Cape is a hotbed of rugby and anyone who says the sport isn’t part of Black culture should go and pay a visit to that province, where the passion for the oval ball outweighs that for football in many areas.

Transformation is about providing equal opportunities to these communities, who are undoubtedly lagging behind socio-economically due to the injustices of the past. I’ve heard many South Africans complain about the All Blacks and the Wallabies and their use of players from the Pacific islands, but we have a vast reservoir of talent that is lying untapped – we should be worried about our house and getting that in order. I am sure the Springboks will be even stronger once we maximise the talent from the Eastern Cape.

One of the other gripes I hear all the time is “So when will transformation end?”

I am indebted to supersport.com rugby editor Johan Coetzee for giving the best answer to this question: When a rugby player born in Mdantsane has the same chance of making it as one born in Waterkloof.

And for those who accuse Bafana Bafana of not being fully representative: more whites have played for the national soccer team than Blacks for the Springboks.

For the majority of young Black rugby players, their challenges to success on the field are far greater – they often come from poor backgrounds where things White prospects can take for granted like nutrition, transport, decent facilities and familial support are conspicuously absent.

Even if they do make it to a professional level, their chances of gaining selection are smaller than their White counterparts, according to a thesis by Jacques du Toit of the University of Cape Town, who found that between 2007 and 2012, playing times for Whites at all levels from Vodacom Cup actually increased while that of Blacks decreased.

Through my friendship with several Black rugby writers and broadcasters, I have heard a common refrain that it is still not a level playing field at professional level, never mind the vast disparities that exist at grassroots, and the statistics seem to back that up.

The first thing that the South African Rugby Union need to do is improve access to rugby in schools across the land. Cricket South Africa have asked for the assistance of government in taking their sport into schools and earlier this week they signed an operational agreement with the departments of basic education and sports and recreation which will improve opportunities at disadvantaged schools.

Rugby needs to do the same; government has to come to the party if transformation is going to happen.

Secondly, Saru have to ensure that there is more opportunity in professional rugby for Black players to shine. That is their area of jurisdiction and, whether by quotas or some other mechanism, we cannot have a situation where levels of representation have not improved since the 2007 World Cup.

Again, they could take a leaf out of cricket’s book.

Omphile Ramela was a journeyman batsman who had never averaged over 35 in a South African domestic season, until 2014/15 when CSA’s increased targets forced the Cape Cobras to play him in just about all their games. Suddenly, given decent opportunity ie a run of games, he blossomed, averaging 48 for the Cape Cobras as they won the four-day title, and earning him a place in the SA A squad.

This week he scored a century against India A as SA A enjoyed their best day of what had been a dismal tour up till then.

Now that’s what you call transformation.

Cell C Sharks coach Gary Gold says his team will continue to play ball-in-hand rugby against the Emirates Lions at King’s Park today, even though this will lead to some close shaves or even defeat as it did last weekend against the Cheetahs.

The Lions are known for a similar approach but have the game-plan bedded down having used it for a few years now under first John Mitchell and now Johan Ackermann, which only increases the challenge for the Sharks.

“We made a lot of errors against the Cheetahs, but you know we were heavily criticised for the way we played last year even though we made the SuperRugby playoffs, and when I was appointed, I spoke to the senior players and they said they want to play ball-in-hand, positive rugby.

“But that comes with risks, it’s easier to coach the other way. It’s a confidence thing, if you get it wrong you’re under the cosh. But it’s about making better decisions in the right areas,” Gold told The Citizen this week.

But playing an expansive brand of rugby also depends heavily on the forwards being ascendant and getting front-foot ball, and the Sharks pack were well-held by the Cheetahs, who dominated the set-pieces.

The return of captain Bismarck du Plessis should add some fire to the Sharks and there will be a fascinating clash between the incumbent Springbok great and the young hooker tipped for great things, Malcolm Marx.

They share a similar physique with Marx being one centimetre shorter at 1.88m and the same weight (113kg) as Du Plessis, according to the Lions website.

“Bismarck brings a different dimension to the Sharks, he is very good at the breakdown, he brings good leadership to the side and he has vast experience, so we know they are going to be a better side than last week.

“Malcolm did very well last week, he has had a game before at this level but it was his first start, and I believe he is only going to get better with more experience. It will be a nice tussle because they are similar in build and frame,” Lions captain Warren Whiteley said.

The Lions fell into the trap of not taking their kicks at goal in last weekend’s defeat to the Hurricanes, while flyhalf Marnitz Boshoff’s boot was also off-form, but Whiteley said he expected all 23 players to step up their efforts today.

They will not be helped by star flanker Jaco Kriel’s absence – he was troubled by a groin strain against the Hurricanes and is now being rested.

Gold was also forced to make changes to the Sharks line-up and has given a debut cap to lock Lubabalo “Giant” Mtyanda.

With both teams coming off home defeats, a titanic tussle can be expected with both packs tearing into each other; for all their big-name players, the Sharks have often been given a hard time by the Lions and that is bound to continue.

Teams

Sharks: 15-SP Marais, 14-Odwa Ndungane, 13-Waylon Murray, 12-Heimar Williams, 11-Lwazi Mvovo, 10-Pat Lambie, 9-Cobus Reinach, 8-Tera Mtembu, 7-Renaldo Bothma, 6-Marcell Coetzee, 5-Pieter-Steph du Toit, 4-Lubabalo Mtyanda, 3-Jannie du Plessis, 2-Bismarck du Plessis, 1-Dale Chadwick. Replacements – 16-Kyle Cooper, 17-Thomas du Toit, 18-Matt Stevens, 19-Marco Wentzel, 20-Jean Deysel, 21-Conrad Hoffmann, 22-Fred Zeilinga, 23-Andre Esterhuizen.

Lions: 15-Andries Coetzee, 14-Ruan Combrinck, 13-Lionel Mapoe, 12-Howard Mnisi, 11-Courtnall Skosan, 10-Marnitz Boshoff, 9-Ross Cronje, 8-Warren Whiteley, 7-Warwick Tecklenburg, 6-Derick Minnie, 5-Franco Mostert, 4-Martin Muller, 3-Ruan Dreyer, 2-Malcolm Marx, 1-Jacques van Rooyen. Replacements – 16-Robbie Coetzee, 17-Schalk van der Merwe, 18-Julian Redelinghuys, 19-JP du Preez, 20-Ruaan Lerm, 21-Faf de Klerk, 22-Elton Jantjies, 23-Harold Vorster.

A typically calm Hashim Amla century set them on their way, but South Africa had to overcome some scary moments in the field before eventually beating New Zealand by 20 runs in the first Momentum One-day International at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Wednesday.

For those looking for deliverance from the demons of the World Cup semi-final in Auckland five months ago, this time the Proteas held their nerve to close out the game, despite some spirited lower-order batting by New Zealand.

Amla continued his personal love affair with SuperSport Park as his third ODI century in 10 innings at the ground took South Africa to 304 for seven in their 50 overs.

Amla, who has also scored four Test centuries at SuperSport Park and averages 85 in the long format there, batted through to the end of the 45^th over in stroking a marvellous 124 off 126 balls and ending a lean run in which he had not scored a half-century in seven innings.

South Africa are amongst the leaders in world cricket when it comes to using the new ball in limited-overs cricket and so the Black Caps, with regular opener Martin Guptill pushed down the order after he injured his hand in the field late in the Proteas’ innings, were understandably cautious up front.

In the temporary absence of Guptill, wicketkeeper Luke Ronchi (1) was pushed up the order but was dropped third ball at second slip before edging the last delivery of the first over low to Amla at slip. It was a sensational opening over by Dale Steyn, with Tom Latham being dropped first ball by Farhaan Behardien at square-leg, a tough chance diving low to his left.

Steyn was then seen off by Latham and captain Kane Williamson and, with Vernon Philander typically tight up front as well, the New Zealand innings was off to a slow start.

But Latham was composed and Williamson was all class, identifying the times to attack extremely well, and the fifty partnership was raised off 77 balls.

The arrival of ODI debutant David Wiese as the fifth bowler was identified as the time to step up the pace and the next 50 runs took less than seven overs to post.

The hundred partnership was up off 117 balls, but it was the guile of leg-spinner Imran Tahir that was causing the New Zealand batsmen the most trouble and he removed Williamson for 47 when the Black Caps captain tried to clear the infield but instead picked out substitute Dean Elgar, who was positioned between extra cover and a deep mid-off.

Guptill, coming in at number four, caused some flutters in crashing 25 off 23 balls before Wiese removed him and South Africa looked well in control when Philander dismissed Grant Elliott (4), caught at a well-placed slip, and Latham, trapped lbw for a determined 60 off 80 balls, in the 30^th over.

New Zealand were 158 for five, needing to practically double their score in the next 20 overs, but South Africa were placed under pressure again as Jimmy Neesham and Colin Munro slammed 71 off 68 balls for the sixth wicket.

The visitors needed 79 to win in the last 10 overs and Proteas fans were clearly worried that victory would once again be stolen from them.

But AB de Villiers backed Wiese to return and a well-directed bouncer had Neesham caught behind for a run-a-ball 41, with Munro falling three overs later for 33, also at a run-a-ball, playing an ugly reverse-heave at Tahir at the start of the 44^th over.

New Zealand still needed 61 runs from 37 balls, but the remaining overs were punctuated with boundaries as the Kiwis came within a sniff of a chance.

Steyn ended McClenaghan’s fun with a fast, full and straight delivery that broke the off-stump in two, before Philander ended the match with a run out thanks to some slick work at deep mid-off.

Tahir was the best of the South African bowlers, ending with brilliant figures of two for 40 in 10 overs, while Philander was also consistent, finishing with two for 51.

Kagiso Rabada struggled with bouts of waywardness and extras, finishing with one for 49 in 9.1 overs, while the radar of Wiese was off on Wednesday night, although the all-rounder did claim the vital wickets of Guptill and Neesham.

An obvious lack of intensity in the field was what captain De Villiers was most concerned with, but the batting of Amla and Rilee Rossouw made up for that.

With the experienced Morne van Wyk opening the batting with him and lasting until the ninth over as 46 were added for the first wicket, Amla seemed better able to focus on his own batting and go at his own, measured pace.

New Zealand had won the toss and elected to bowl first and both Amla and Van Wyk were troubled early on by the pace and bounce obtained by Adam Milne and McClenaghan. But they picked their shots well and were just beginning to up the pace when the left-armer McClenaghan switched to around the wicket and immediately had Van Wyk (16) caught off the shoulder of the bat in the gully.

Once the new ball lost its shine, however, the pace of the pitch quickly disappeared, and Rossouw had to deal not only with Milne, who was a handful throughout, but also the sudden change of pace when the medium-pacers and spinners came on with the softer ball.

Rossouw endured a torrid start, scoring just 14 runs from his first 36 deliveries, but he and Amla had several conversations and wisely decided wickets in hand were more important than the run-rate at that stage.

The stand between them grew to a record 185 off 203 balls, South Africa’s best for the second wicket against New Zealand, beating the 172 Gary Kirsten and Jacques Kallis added in Kimberley in 2000/01.

Once settled, Rossouw was able to speed up, bludgeoning six fours and three sixes as he scored 89 off 112 balls, while Amla switched between accumulation and all-out attack with superb judgement. He was particularly impressive against the spinners, using his feet well and invariably placing his strokes between the fielders.

Rossouw was beaten by a superb McClenaghan yorker, into the base of leg-stump and breaking it, in the 42^nd over, and Milne then returned to snap up two wickets in the 45^th over – the vital scalps of Amla and De Villiers (9).

Amla was also bowled by a magnificent yorker, while De Villiers pulled a short ball straight to cow-corner.

The double strike took away some momentum from the South African innings, but Wiese hit two sixes off McClenaghan at the start of the final over to get the home side over the 300 mark.

McClenaghan then started bowling short and just one more run was added before the innings ended with two run outs.

Fast bowler Milne was the best of the New Zealand bowlers with two for 51 in 10 overs.

They’re going to be spluttering into their gin and tonics at the Marylebone Cricket Club after England’s humiliating start to the World Cup, but it’s no more than they deserve after all the boardroom shenanigans that have been going on in the so-called home of the game.

It’s amazing how English cricket has managed to marry such smugness and superiority with such abysmal performances on the field of play, but it makes every hiding they receive in the World Cup even more pleasurable.

I generally don’t enjoy seeing sportsmen humiliated on the field of play, but I’ll make an exception in this case because of the thoroughly distasteful manner in which the England and Wales Cricket Board went to the dodgy lair of Narayanaswami Srinivasan and ingratiated themselves into the so-called “Big Three” that have hijacked the game.

My biggest bone of contention with the Big Three is that they seek to monopolise the game for their own benefit and are actively trying to halt the progress of the up-and-coming Associate nations by removing them from future World Cups. As veteran Ireland opener Ed Joyce pointed out, cricket is the only sport which is trying to contract its World Cup, while every other sport on the planet (yes, even American Football) is trying to expand its reach.

As the ANC, and the National Party before them, are showing so clearly, concentrating all the riches in the hands of an elite minority can only put a country or a sport on the road to destruction.

England will be the venue for the next World Cup, in 2019, and it is set to be a 10-team tournament. There’s little doubt that English cricket, having plundered talent from this country for so long, stand to benefit if the likes of Ireland and Scotland are barred from the highest echelon of the game; their top players will surely be tempted to play for England, just like their current captain, Eoin Morgan. England clearly need some reinforcements.

That the Associates and minnow nations like Zimbabwe and Bangladesh are adding value to the game’s global showpiece cannot be doubted. Zimbabwe did themselves proud against South Africa, Ireland have already beaten the West Indies and Scotland did substantially better against New Zealand than England.

The plucky United Arab Emirates have some elegant batsmen and a genuine quick bowler in Mohammad Naveed, Bangladesh’s Shakib al-Hasan is a world-class all-rounder, while Afghanistan’s mere presence is a tremendous story of sportsmen rising above incredible challenges.

Sadly, there is a South African man at the centre of these efforts to push back the Associates – former wicketkeeper/batsman Dave Richardson, although he is probably just taking orders from those who pay his salary as ICC chief executive.

I say this because Richardson has been quoted as saying having Associate teams in the World Cup leads to too many one-sided matches and has also been quoted as praising the unpredictability and charm that these same teams bring to the tournament!

There are, of course, places nine and ten open for qualifiers at the next World Cup, but Zimbabwe and Bangladesh, who vote in favour of the Big Three and receive financial rewards and more exposure for their teams as a result, will be heavily favoured to take those spots as the system is in their favour.

Apart from England’s dreadful performances, the other key features of the first week of the Cricket World Cup have been New Zealand’s invincibility at home, a new benchmark of 300 runs per innings being set by the powerful batting sides and the importance of taking wickets in the middle overs otherwise set batsmen in the death overs will run amok.