Ken Borland

Phepsi Buthelezi’s Facebook page has just one Life Event posted on it: “October 30, 2018 – Started a new job at the Sharks”.

In the 32 months since then it is fair to say that the 22-year-old from Hluhluwe has blown away his employers with his dedication, talent, leadership and positive attitude. To such an extent that he was named their Currie Cup captain for this season, although he is currently out of action with a minor concussion. it is hoped he will be back to lead his troops against the British and Irish Lions on July 7.

Buthelezi is just one of those guys who impresses everywhere he goes, knocking over hurdles and making it look easy. But coming from a town that probably has more game reserves than rugby fields in the immediate vicinity, he has had challenges to overcome in order to progress through the rugby pipeline from one of the backwaters.

“It was obviously tough coming from Hluhluwe and where rugby comes short in Zululand is that we don’t play enough there, compared to the Eastern Cape primary schools, which play so much more games and therefore there is a lot more opportunity. There’s a lot of talent in Zululand, I reckon the kids there are just as talented, but they are raw. We know the Eastern Cape is crazy about rugby, but it’s quite big in Zululand too,” Buthelezi told Saturday Citizen.

But a talent such as Buthelezi normally just needs a couple of lucky breaks and he will soar. The eighthman with the slick hands made his breakthrough when he came to Durban.

“I was a loose forward and lock playing in the Zululand U12 trials and my older brother, Blessing, was at Durban High School and he did very well there. So DHS saw me and gave me a scholarship. I played lock there from the U14s through to the U15s, and in fact in the KZN U16 team I played lock alongside JJ van der Mescht [a current Sharks second-rower].

“And then I became Head of School at DHS and beating Glenwood in our big derby in 2017 gives me goosebumps still. We hadn’t beaten them since 2006 and it was one of the best days of my life. It was a big occasion, their Old Boys’ Day at Glenwood, but we just wanted it so much. It’s still one of my favourite games ever,” Buthelezi said.

DHS came from 3-12 down to win 20-17 and Buthelezi scored their final try.

He made the SA Schools side later that year and in 2018 he captained the SA U20s.

It was certainly his – and the Sharks’  – good fortune that he then landed up at Kings Park.

“Being at the Sharks has made the transition from the Junior Boks to senior rugby so much smoother because of the type of coaches we have. Like Sean Everitt, who is a transformational coach that believes in growing and developing players. I am so blessed at the Sharks, it’s not just about what you can do for them now, but about where you can be in five years time. We are all driving towards the future,” Buthelezi said.

Never mind breaking a glass ceiling, the way Buthelezi is going, he’s gong to reach the ozone layer.

But it is typical of the humble young man that he is thankful for the help of family and friends along the way.

“A lot of people have had a positive influence in my career, starting with my family, especially my mother. Through it all, the good days and the bad, she has always been there encouraging me through it all and it was not always pretty.

“At the Sharks, guys like Tera Mtembu and Keegan Daniel helped me a lot. I actually stayed with Tera for the first couple of months at the Sharks and he was so welcoming. You can feel threatened by someone who plays in the same position as you and maybe not give of yourself too much, but he was always helpful, giving me tips and encouragement, and Keegan too.

“The Du Preez brothers were also great and Siya Kolisi and Sikhumbuzo Notshe are the players I learn from now, I’m just absorbing knowledge. It’s great to see the type of person Siya is, yes he’s a wonderful rugby player who has done amazing things, but what stands out is what sort of person he is, he never treats anyone differently and is such a good example to us younger guys. He’s just a good human being.”

For the man whose real name is Phendulani, but who was called Phepsi because his teachers at the predominantly Hluhluwe Primary School struggled, it’s now all about the Currie Cup, which the Sharks came agonisingly close to winning last season, only losing in extra time to the Bulls.

“As a squad we are really targeting the Currie Cup, we feel ready now to actually win some trophies, although we understand it’s going to be tough.

“As a captain I value people, I never go in thinking I have to be in charge. Leadership is influence and I try to get to know the players on and off the field so I can get the best reaction out of them, and of course I try to lead by example.

“As a player I don’t think I’m a typical South African eighthman, which I see as an advantage because it makes me different. I never want to play like someone else and hopefully one day I can play eighthman for the Springboks that way,” Buthelezi, a classic-style No.8 whose linking, ball-playing game suits the Sharks’ perfectly, said.

 

Rising South African star Callum Mowat no doubt has a date with destiny waiting for him on the Sunshine Tour and the 23-year-old is confident that if it comes this week in the Africa Open at East London Golf Club, he will be ready.

Mowat, a leading amateur golfer, turned pro in 2014 and finished a highly-creditable 62nd on the Order of Merit. He has built on that solid start to his professional career with impressive recent form that saw him finish in a tie for third at the Dimension Data Pro-Am and then tied-13th at last week’s Joburg Open, earning himself over R400 000 for the fortnight and lifting him to ninth in this year’s money-list.

“I’m in good form at the moment and I’m getting used to playing alongside some top golfers, playing with my role-models, just putting that aside. I feel like I’m finding my comfort zone and if I get towards the top of the leaderboard on Sunday, I’m ready to take my chances, I’ll definitely go for it. You never know what might happen,” Mowat said on Tuesday at East London Golf Club.

Mowat was pleased with his efforts at Royal Johannesburg and Kensington Golf Club in the Joburg Open, which was just the fourth co-sanctioned European Tour event he has played in. An opening round of 71 on the West Course was his undoing, but rounds of 65, 71 and 68 on the tough East Course showed what he is capable of.

“I had a good finish in the Joburg Open, but it was a pity about my start – to shoot level-par on the West Course when most of the golfers were going more deep under-par there,” Mowat said.

A tied-29th finish at last year’s Tshwane Open was his previous best finish in a co-sanctioned event, and Mowat is looking forward to competing with the best in windy coastal conditions now.

There is reportedly a gale brewing and heading towards East London in time for the Africa Open, but the Central Gauteng-based Mowat is unconcerned.

“I’ve done well in windy conditions previously and if it blows this week then I could have a look in,” the winner of the 2013 Southern Cape Amateur Championship said. “I played an SA Amateur here in East London and it’s a good course, you can do well if you keep the ball in play. I think that’s the key because there’s a lot of bush around.

“My ball-flight is lower, not like most Gauteng golfers, which helps in the wind. I’m more of a ‘feel’ golfer, I think I can manipulate the ball quite well and I enjoy playing different shots. I enjoy the challenge, you have to really think about where to hit the ball and then ‘feel’ it in there, it becomes a fun game,” Mowat said.

The shortness of the East London Golf Club course – it measures just 6051 metres but is hilly – also suits the talented all-round sportsman from King Edward VII High School.

“Pitching is my strength and on the shorter courses I’ve done better because of that. It all depends on the wind though, because if it blows the wrong way then it can make the course very long,” Mowat said.

The value of experience at the old-style course, one of the oldest in South Africa, that mixes aspects of parkland and links golf, is shown by the list of previous winners – Thomas Aiken, Darren Fichardt, Louis Oosthuizen, Charl Schwartzel and Retief Goosen – but Mowat is confident he can carry the confidence from winning at amateur level into the paid ranks.

“I think it will be the same feeling at the top of the leaderboard, there will obviously be nerves. The fact that you’re playing for money makes it a bit bigger, but it’s still the trophy you’re playing for at the end.

“You just have to try and keep it together down the stretch, it’s just a bigger event. It’s about coping with pressure and I just need to think about how I’ve done it before,” Mowat said.

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