It is a great honour and challenge to have been given the opportunity to begin to fix rugby in a region of the country that once sat proudly at the sport’s top table.
It is a region, headquartered in Gqeberha, previously known as Port Elizabeth, which contains all the necessary elements to be a rugby powerhouse, as it was in the past – and a powerhouse of SA rugby transformation.
By ingredients I refer to tradition, feeder schools, major university and sparkling 2010 World Cup stadium.
The only missing ingredient over the past few years has been the commitment of critical role-players including administrators and business. But there are clear signs that this is changing.
We had to start somewhere and travelling to Loftus for our first match back among the heavyweights couldn’t have been a more daunting challenge.
On the scoreboard, our results in the first weeks back with the heavyweights haven’t met our expectations.
But our boys’ courage was immense. Many were club players stepping onto a bigger stage for the first time. The lessons learned were fundamental to their progress. The value of beginning to build systems, structure and belief in the region will bear fruit.
The support of sponsors is the key to ripening this fruit in abundance.
Just as it is difficult for South Africa’s richest unions to hang onto players lured away by the power of the Pound, Franc or Yen, so it has been difficult to persuade our local boys to stay when the Sharks or the Bulls come dangling their chequebooks.
In the short-term I have suggested that the rugby authorities consider deploying to us some hardebaarde players who may not presently be used by other regions. They will help accelerate our development to the next level.
Our challenge is to be competitive, not just with the salaries, but a professional environment that offers real opportunities to grow our future stars into world class athletes.
The Eastern Cape is known as the Home of Legends. It has produced legendary warriors, political leaders and rugby players – from Danie Gerber to Siya Kolisi.
It is time for the province to nurture its riches again. It is in this noble endeavour that I am honoured to play a small part.
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