Ken Borland

Tendai Mtawarira is no doubt today savouring the fact that he became South Africa’s most-capped SuperRugby player last night at Ellis Park, and his mind will probably wander back to the past, starting with when he was summoned to then Sharks head coach Dick Muir’s office back in 2006.

The Beast had arrived at Kings Park the year before, a talented Zimbabwe U19 star given an opportunity at the Sharks Academy. While playing for the provincial U21 side, Mtawarira had already impressed with his work ethic and drive. Having arrived in Durban with basically a suitcase, he initially used to walk to training until he had saved up enough money to buy a bicycle.

But he was a loose forward, occasionally even playing at lock. But Muir, in consultation with Swys de Bruin, now head coach of the Lions team against whom Mtawarira played his record 157^th SuperRugby game last night, and Grant Bashford, his U21 coaches, made a tough call made even harder by how popular Beast was.

Muir felt that Mtawarira was not quick enough to really make it as a loose forward and not tall enough at 1.83 metres to excel at lock. But he recognised the immense power and raw strength of the young man.

“It’s quite funny to think about it now, but it wasn’t very pleasant at the time. I was called into his office in the U21 season in 2006 and I’d been enjoying my rugby in the loose trio. But then Dick presented his case and said he saw me as only becoming a provincial player as a loose forward, if I wanted to become a Springbok then I had to change to prop.

“It was really hard to accept and I was quite upset. I couldn’t believe that so early in my career, my dream to be a professional rugby player was going to end. I was really shook. But some of my mentors said I must go for it, they said I must not be negative about it because it means the head coach is looking at you and has a plan for you,” Mtawarira recalled when talking to Saturday Citizen this week about how his long journey to the top all began.

But as we now know, Mtawarira always meets his challenges head-on and in 2007 he was already proficient enough at loosehead prop to play SuperRugby for the Sharks.

“I was under Balie Swart’s wing and he taught me everything about scrummaging, I decided to take it all on board and make it work. Balie is right at the top in terms of mentors for me, as well as John Plumtree. And then there were fellow Sharks players like Deon Carstens, BJ Botha, Bismarck du Plessis and John Smit who had big input in my career, they guided me into this world of scrummaging.

“There were some tough lessons at the beginning and sometimes I couldn’t feel my neck for a few days! But it changed my life and the Sharks have been a great organisation since I came here as a young boy with a dream and got my first contract. I was underprivileged and came to Durban with nothing, but now I am something, Durban has become who I am, it is home,” Mtawarira said.

Loyalty is another characteristic of Mtawarira that stands out, both to the Sharks and his family. Not many players stay at one union these days, especially when they are amongst the world’s best in their position, but all 157 of those SuperRugby games have been for the Sharks.

“For me it’s about playing the game and focusing on the next job, it’s never been about counting games, just about using every opportunity. I try to stay humble and hungry, take on good criticism and I’ve had good mentors and team-mates at the Sharks. I’m very privileged to be part of this set-up, which I think of as home.

“Durban is a beautiful city, with the beach, and the people are very warm and welcoming. Although my roots are in Zimbabwe, this is home for us – my family, my wife [Kuziva] and kids [daughter Talumba and son Wangu], they go to school here,” Mtawarira said.

Even once he became a Springbok in 2008, putting one of the biggest dents in a legendary prop’s career when he dismantled veteran Phil Vickery at Kings Park in the first Test against the British and Irish Lions in 2009, there were still hard times ahead.

In 2010, he missed the June Tests due to a controversy over his citizenship, and in 2012 he was admitted to hospital with heart palpitations on the eve of a Test in Ireland, which required surgery.

“I’ve had a lot of challenges, the heart scare back in the day and the citizenship issue, but the prayers of my family and my faith have got me through. I’m very outspoken about my faith, it’s my foundation and I give praise to God and try and use rugby as a platform to honour him. Angels are looking after me, but I’m not perfect,” Mtawarira said.

We might not see Beast on a rugby field again after this year and, apart from winning the World Cup with the Springboks, he also has some unfinished business with the Sharks.

“I’d like to pursue the SuperRugby title, I’m disappointed to have not won one yet, I’ve been in three finals but zero titles. That’s been my motivation to stay here and I will give everything to win SuperRugby because this season might be my last one,” Mtawarira said.

Quinton de Kock has not batted with such assurance of his role or such clinical efficiency in Test cricket before and his career-best innings took South Africa to 421 for eight at lunch on the second day of the fourth Test against England at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Saturday.

South Africa had resumed their first innings on 329 for five and De Kock’s fine 85 not out off just 94 balls, with 12 fours and a six spread all around the ground, made sure that the memorable centuries scored by Stephen Cook and Hashim Amla on the first day were translated into a sizeable total.

De Kock lost overnight partner Temba Bavuma (35) before long on the second morning, the diminutive batsman not driving with the same authority as he did on the first evening and edging Stuart Broad behind after he had added just three runs to his overnight score.

Kagiso Rabada then fell to his first ball, Jimmy Anderson finding his pads with a brilliant inswinging yorker for his first wicket in 24 overs of toil. The batsman’s review was in vain as Rabada recorded his second duck in his fledgling Test career.

With South Africa having slipped to 336 for seven, De Kock began playing his shots in impressive fashion, wowing a capacity Saturday crowd.

Kyle Abbott was his partner in a rollicking eighth-wicket stand of 50 off 55 balls, having his career-best score of 16 to boast about.

Once Abbott was removed midway through the session, trapped lbw by Ben Stokes, De Kock linked up again, this time with Dane Piedt (10*) as they carried South Africa through to lunch with an unbeaten stand of 35 for the ninth wicket.

England were let down by their catching behind the wicket on the second morning, with Stokes dropping a sharp chance in the gully from De Kock off Anderson in the third over when the left-hander had just 28, and wicketkeeper Jonathan Bairstow and slip Alastair Cook allowing another edge from De Kock to sail between them in Chris Woakes’ penultimate over before lunch.

https://citizen.co.za/sport/south-african-sport/sa-cricket-sport/957580/957580/

The lure of 200 Test caps was strong, but with the excitement of getting engaged, the approach of her 30^th birthday and the new teaching job she has started, South African women’s hockey star Sulette Damons decided to call time on her illustrious career last week after making 198 appearances for the national team.

Robin van Ginkel, the new coach, recently held the second training camp of the year and the women’s national team is going to be a different, less exuberant environment without Damons, who was as loved off the field for her personality as she was respected on it, being one of the co-captains for last year’s World Cup, the most recent action the team saw.

“It would have been nice to reach 200, but I reached what I needed to and I played in three Commonwealth Games, three World Cups and an Olympic Games, so I feel like I’ve done all I could. I am getting older and I feel it’s the right time to concentrate on my career as a teacher and I’ve just got engaged as well,” Damons told Saturday Citizen.

Blessed with terrific pace and ball-skills, Damons played on the wing and scored and set up many goals for South Africa. The child of a domestic worker, Damons feasted on every opportunity that came her way and is truly an inspirational transformation success story.

Raised in the Umasizakhe township in Graaff-Reinet, Damons’ life changed when the family who employed her mother, Frances Buffels, funded her schooling at Union primary and high schools. The brilliance that lay within her DNA was soon recognised and she captained both her school and the Eastern Province hockey teams.

Damons then won a bursary to the University of Potchefstroom (Pukke) and was chosen for the SA U21 team in 2008, before making her debut for South Africa in 2010, at the World Cup in Rosario, Argentina.

She made the most dramatic of entrances into international hockey as well, scoring the winner against Spain.

“My favourite goal was most definitely the one on debut in the 2010 World Cup, my first international goal, against Spain. It was the winner and it was South Africa’s first win at the World Cup in a long time, so it was my best goal ever.

“Captain Marsha Marescia was at halfway and I just saw a gap so I started sprinting and she hit a backsticks aerial pass over everyone, and it was just me and the goalkeeper in the circle. I put my stick out and I don’t know how, but by the grace of God the ball hit it and went in!” Damons recalled.

She tended to do well in World Cups and another of her favourite memories is scoring in the 4-2 win over England in the 2014 World Cup at the Hague, in her 150^th game for South Africa.

Having qualified with a B.Ed, Damons is now teaching Grade IIIs in Bloemfontein, where her fiancé lives, at St Michaels School for Girls. Obviously they have got her involved in hockey as well, and she coaches the U13A side. A career in coaching might just lay ahead.

“Once I find my feet in coaching, maybe I’ll look to take it further. For now I still want to play a bit, for both my club and province, and hopefully I can play in the Premier Hockey League [PHL] as well,” Damons said.

Never mind her coaching expertise, Damons’ life story is enough to inspire and she says her success was all about exposure, and believes that is the answer to the all-important transformation questions facing South African hockey.

“Transformation is important because there is a lot of talent in this country and a lot of players are talented enough to reach what I did. The potential is there but it’s all about exposure, which is why the PHL is great, it allows the up-and-coming prospects to play with experienced players. We just need to make sure there are enough tournaments for these players,” Damons said.

And while the national team bombed out at the first stage of last year’s World Cup, finishing 15^th out of 16 teams, Damons said all is not doom and gloom in that department, with change afoot.

“The change of coach was good and they’ve had a good start to the year under Robin, plus there’s more staff and a bigger squad now, it’s not just the same people over and over. There’s a lot of youth in that squad so that’s very healthy, it ensures the senior players don’t feel too comfortable because now there’s more competition.

“The youngsters are hungry and want experience. The biggest issue though is finances and if you don’t have that you can’t compete and we’ll still be behind the other teams. But if they can fix that and have more training camps and tours then they will be okay. The difficulty is hockey is an amateur sport in South Africa and we need players who are willing to take unpaid leave or put their studies on hold,” Damons said.

But if stories like Damons’ – a life transformed and now she is busy transforming other lives – don’t inspire support for hockey then it is difficult to know what will.

https://citizen.co.za/sport/south-african-sport/2093593/women-in-sport-sulette-damons-transformed-hockey-now-shes-transforming-lives/

There was nothing logical about the Springboks’ epic victory over the All Blacks in Wellington last weekend: their recent form and that of their opponents certainly didn’t suggest it and neither did South Africa’s miserable record at The Cake Tin, where they had lost all six previous matches against New Zealand. The match statistics were thoroughly dominated by the home side, who outscored the Boks by six tries to five.

And, unusually when I get to watch the Springboks in a non-working capacity, there wasn’t a beer or a braai in sight when I settled down to watch the TV broadcast. That’s because I was watching in a shopping mall (not maul) of all places.

The occasion was one of those “events” that marketing people are so fond of, but this one was memorable, not just because the long nine-year wait for a Springbok win in New Zealand came to an end. I remember thinking, shortly before those excruciating final minutes when the world’s best referee, Nigel Owens, lost his composure as much as anyone, that this had been one of my most enjoyable Springboks-on-TV viewing experiences ever.

I know this next bit will be met with as much disbelief in some quarters as the revelation that I did not have a beer the entire match, but I was also the only White person at the gathering.

In terms of the demographics of the country, it is logical that last weekend’s Fine Leg Productions event with the Gwijo Squad and Touch Rugby Sundays shows what the future of rugby in this country will be like. And what a bright future it is judging by the sheer passion on display, the knowledgeable comments and the tremendous spirit that led to a wonderful atmosphere, even when many of us were cursing Owens under our breath.

I have watched rugby in many establishments in the supposed rugby heartland and felt way less comfortable in a testosterone-fuelled atmosphere and way less impressed by the knowledge of the game that was on display. Several women attended the Fine Leg Productions event and seemed totally at home.

And imagine how much harder it is for these rugby-loving Black fans to feel comfortable in some of our stadiums? This was one of the issues raised after the match in the discussion that was held and it is also central to the creation of the Gwijo Squad.

They are a group of rugby-mad Springbok followers who are transforming the stadium vibe by singing and chanting vernacular war cries and their efforts to inculcate a more inclusive culture have been mirrored at Springbok level. It has been hard for Black Springboks to feel totally comfortable in that environment, to feel that they can bring their own culture into the team, but that has all changed with the appointment of Siya Kolisi as captain. Now we see the team singing traditional songs before and after the game and it is wonderful to behold this new, all-South African culture taking hold.

With so much focus now on the economics of our rugby – the viability of our professional structures and how we are struggling to compete with overseas teams because of the weakness of the rand – it is definitely necessary for the sport to be open to as many communities as possible. In order for that to really take off, those communities have to feel wanted and truly part of South African rugby.

A term like “rugby development” is perhaps not the best word to use because it implies creating an interest that is not already there. Contrary to what All Blacks coach Steve Hansen may believe, judging by the extracts of his book published this week, rugby has also been a Black sport for more than a century.

Perhaps the Gwijo Squad can arrange to take Hansen, when he is here in the first week of October, on a little tour of the Eastern Cape, where Black clubs are more than a hundred years old and rugby poles are seen in the rural areas far more often than soccer goals.

https://www.pressreader.com/south-africa/the-citizen-gauteng/20180922/282720522881060