Ken Borland

He may be heading off to Kimberley this weekend instead of being in Treviso, Italy, but just having the joy of regular playing opportunity is giving Phepsi Buthelezi a broad grin these days and bringing out the best in the Sharks eighthman.

The unfortunate knee injury suffered by Sikhumbuzo Notshe has allowed Buthelezi to step up and the 22-year-old has been one of the Sharks’ star players in recent weeks, particularly with ball in hand. His form was not enough, though, to elevate the Sharks above the Bulls, and instead of playing in the Rainbow Cup final against Benetton Treviso this weekend, the Durbanites will be travelling to Kimberley to open their Currie Cup campaign against Griquas on Saturday.

“We would all loved to have been in Italy, it’s very disappointing that we didn’t make it. But we put ourselves in this position and now we have to make the most of it and make sure we put in a great performance in Kimberley. Although I grew up watching guys like Ardie Savea and Kieran Read play, and Sikhumbuzo and Duane Vermeulen are leading the pack here, I just want to show what I can bring to the table.

“I don’t want to be like someone else and we all bring something different and they are all very special players and unique in their own way. It was very unfortunate for Sikhumbuzo to go down the way he did and he’s a very important part of our squad. But it has given me more opportunity and I’ve been able to grow as a player, for which I’m really grateful,” Buthelezi said on Wednesday.

Amid all the disappointment of once again falling short behind the Bulls, Buthelezi says there is still a great vibe in the Sharks camp.

“The coaches always give us a lot of backing and the management behind the scenes too. We haven’t got the results we wanted in some of the games, but I think our performances are getting better. Personally, with more opportunity, I am learning and growing and I always go back and look at games to see how I can play better. I feel very fortunate to play for the Sharks and the environment allows me to be myself.

“We’ll have a very fresh squad this weekend, with a lot of different guys getting an opportunity, but everyone is hungry to play. It’s always a tough trip to Kimberley and Griquas have been on a very good run in the Currie Cup lately. We know they will be physical and confrontational, they will want to bully us up front. But it will be very refreshing to play them after just playing the other three franchises for so long,” Buthelezi said.

Not giving away possession or penalties is what the Sharks have identified as the key things they need to rectify as they go into their Rainbow Cup match against the Lions on Saturday on the back of successive defeats to the Bulls and Stormers, according to lock Reniel Hugo.

The setbacks have left the Sharks four points adrift of the log-leading Bulls and sitting in third place below the Stormers on points difference. If the Lions win at Ellis Park on Saturday then they could actually leapfrog the KwaZulu-Natalians.

“It’s not nice having two losses behind our names but we have the opportunity to rectify our mistakes this weekend. We are conceding a lot of penalties and that just allows the opposition to kick out and set the rolling maul, which then takes a lot of energy to defend. So we have been working very hard on our discipline so we don’t concede penalties and also on keeping the ball.

“Against the Bulls we had to defend more than a dozen rolling mauls and sometimes your legs just give in. But sometimes it’s just one guy coming in at the wrong place and that breaks the system. A few guys have made mistakes and I was one of them. As an older guy, hopefully I can bring a bit more experience and try and get the team to gel together better,” Hugo said on Tuesday.

The Sharks have won their last four matches in Johannesburg, dating back to their 26-19 Super Rugby defeat in their opening game of 2018, and Hugo said their focus is squarely on becoming the first South African team to contest the Rainbow Cup final.

“The Lions lost their first three games, but they weren’t big losses and they had lots of opportunities to win. It just shows that all four teams in this competition are very good and the quality of rugby is such that there are no easy games. So it’s going to be very important for us to be clinical, we must stop them, get turnovers and create opportunities for ourselves.

“But the Lions showed how tough this competition is when they beat the Bulls to open the Rainbow Cup up massively. If we can now win both these last games then we’ll be in with a shout of playing in that final in Italy,” Hugo said.

Gift Ngoepe has been making headlines this week, giving South African baseball a rare moment in the sun, and his incredible story just goes to prove that talent meeting opportunity should be at the root of all transformation or development efforts in this country.

Ngoepe became the first ever player born in Africa to play Major League Baseball when he turned out for the Pittsburgh Pirates against the Chicago Cubs, the World Series champions, and made a single in his first at-bat, showing his ability as his hit registered the highest velocity off the bat in the whole game, and he then played a part in the double-play that ended the contest and sealed a thrilling 6-5 win for his team.

As is so often the case, nobody could have guessed what talent Ngoepe possessed for the quintessential American game. It was opportunity that unlocked the door and changed his life, leading to him becoming a tremendous role-model for all the less privileged people with sporting dreams in South Africa.

That opportunity came in the most extraordinary, and yet typical, South African way. His mother just happened to be employed as the cleaner at the national baseball headquarters in Randburg and Gift and his younger brother Victor, who plays in the Gulf Coast minor league, stayed with her in a little room on the premises.

Given the opportunity to have a go at this strange sport that is so foreign to most people on the continent, Ngoepe’s talent rapidly became obvious.

Of course there is a gap of several years between that and making history this week, filled with sacrifice, perseverance and a determination to fulfil his dreams. The joy of becoming the sixth South African and the first Black African to sign a professional baseball contract in 2008 gave way to the hard work of spending nine years in the minor leagues.

The magnitude of his achievement and the character of the man is shown by the reaction of both his team-mates and the Cubs to Ngoepe’s special day.

He was warmly greeted by his team-mates when he came on to field at second base and his single was wildly celebrated in the Pirates’ dugout, with chants of “For the Motherland!” and there were tears all round. The Cubs rolled the ball used for the single into the opposition dugout so Ngoepe could keep it as a memento.

The wonderful story of Ngoepe is in stark contrast to the other big sporting news item of the week, the almost certain demise of Lonwabo Tsotsobe.

Once the number one ranked bowler in international limited-overs cricket, Tsotsobe is the latest player to be charged in the corruption web that began with the machinations of Gulam Bodi.

The story of Tsotsobe features all the talent and even more opportunity than Ngoepe’s. The left-arm paceman comes from a well-off family in the Eastern Cape with strong sporting links, his sister Nomsebenzi being a former captain of the national women’s rugby team.

Tsotsobe had all the backing and opportunity in the world, but he lacked the work ethic and determination that so clearly drives Ngoepe. Conditioning, which is really just about hard work, was always a problem for Tsotsobe, and eventually the Proteas management lost patience with him.

Seduced by the bright lights and a glitzy lifestyle, it was perhaps inevitable that Tsotsobe would ultimately fall victim to the lure of easy money.

And yet there are current rising stars like Andile Phehlukwayo and Lungi Ngidi, who stand poised on the edge of stellar international careers having risen above similarly disadvantaged childhoods as Ngoepe, both being the sons of domestic workers.

https://www.pressreader.com/south-africa/the-citizen-gauteng/20170429/282437054017674

The Blue Bulls knocked the stuffing out of Western Province in the first hour as they beat last year’s Currie Cup runners-up 45-26 at Loftus Versfeld on Friday night, giving the ball plenty of air as they ran in six tries to start their campaign on a confident – almost arrogant – note.

After a bad start in which flyhalf Tian Schoeman had his clearance from the kickoff charged down, forcing the Bulls to defend five metres from their line, the home side played some breathtaking rugby as they scorched into a 24-0 lead at halftime, which they extended to 38-0 after 54 minutes.

The try-feast began with a high-class try in the 19^th-minute as loosehead prop Pierre Schoeman, who was one of the Bulls’ standout forwards, made a great steal and then scrumhalf Piet van Zyl, who gave quality service throughout, made a tremendous pass out wide to eighthman Arno Botha, the captain going on a storming run before passing back inside for Van Zyl to score.

The Bulls’ second try, 13 minutes later, came from a textbook up-and-under from Van Zyl and a wonderful chase by wing Jamba Ulengo, opposite number Khanyo Ngcukana being counter-rucked off the ball. A swift backline attack led to a Bulls lineout and centre Dries Swanepoel took it quickly, his smart play leading to a ruck, from which impressive lock Jason Jenkins burst through to score.

Another slick backline move created space out wide from the kickoff and lock Marvin Orie galloped over to complete a classy first half for the Blue Bulls.

Pierre Schoeman was again in the thick of things in the loose in the 47^th minute, his tackle winning a scrum for the Bulls, from which debutant wing Jade Stiglingh showed his pace to slice through for the try on a wraparound move with Tian Schoeman.

The home side again found space out wide in the 54^th minute, fullback Bjorn Basson chipping infield for Ulengo to score.

The quality of the game suffered in the last 10 minutes as the Bulls went through the motions and Western Province finally hung on to the ball for long enough to score four tries and earn themselves a bonus point, Basson scoring a late try for the Bulls to have the final say.

Tian Schoeman was excellent with the boot, succeeding with all seven of his kicks at goal.

Scorers

Blue Bulls – Tries: Piet van Zyl, Jason Jenkins, Marvin Orie, Jade Stiglingh, Jamba Ulengo, Bjorn Basson. Conversions: Tian Schoeman (6). Penalty: Schoeman.

Western Province – Tries: Johnny Kotze, Leolin Zas, Huw Jones, Scott van Breda. Conversions: Brandon Thomson (3).