A President, a Captain, a Nation

I will most certainly be going to watch this movie featuring Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon. I well remember the Rugby World Cup 1995. I was fortunate enough to be able to attend the opening game at Newlands in Cape Town and even today I am moved by the memory of that emotional outpouring of patriotism amongst the throngs of people present in the stadium.

I can still hear the crowd shouting "Nelson, Nelson" as President Mandela walked out to greet the crowds during the opening ceremony. As the national anthem was sung, I remember turning to my right and seeing a white middle-age man crying as the emotion of the moment overwhelmed him.

I do not know if it is possible for those who are not South African to understand that the story portrayed in this movie is not just about a "good story" - it is a much deeper and emotional tale that speaks to the very heart of what it means to be South African in this era of change, uncertainty, challenge and opportunity.

Go and watch this movie and be reminded that sport unites and that we can stand proudly together as brothers and sisters in a beautiful country that more than ever needs unity and Umoja - a spirit of togetherness.

Makhaya Ntini's new record

As an avid cricket fan I was delighted to see South African fast bowler, Makhaya Ntini, become the highest Test wicket taker for South Africa in home test matches. With the dismissal of Bangladeshi batsman Imrul Kayes, he broke the previous record of 235 held by Shaun Pollock.

Another interesting record worth mentioning from the latest Test match against Bangladesh was that South Africa had 5 ducks in their innings and made the highest Test total by a team with 5 or more ducks!

Further up-to-date info on Makhaya Ntini can be found at CricInfo : Makhaya Ntini profile

Government Supports The Boks - When It Suits Them

So the Springboks have won the Laureus Sport Team of the Year Award - a fabulous achievement in anyone's book. Now the ANC jumps on the bandwagon of congratulating the team for their success despite the history of political interference which so often threatened to derail the team on their journey to success.

I find it rather ironic that in their congratulatory statement the government has called on Bafana Bafana, the country's national soccer team, to emulate their rugby counterparts and win the FIFA World Cup in 2010! I wonder to what extent the politicians will interfere with soccer to make this happen. On current form it will take nothing short of a divine miracle for South Africa to win the 2010 World Cup!

While the Springboks certainly united the nation for a time I believe that selective government intervention in other sporting codes will ultimately breakdown the unity they now applaud the Springboks for attaining.

World Champions - Again!

Go Bokke!

An unattractive game possibly but the result is undisputed - the South African rugby team win the World Cup for a second time!

Well done to all involved - a magnificent effort after four years of planning and hard work.

New Zealand 2011 - we're on our way...

Patriotism Spurred On By World Cup Final

It is interesting to see the incredible effect sport has to unite the nation. With the rugby World Cup final happening on Saturday between South Africa and England there is that euphoric feeling in the country that seems to invade our collective consciousness whenever our national sports team achieve.

I have listened intently as people from all socio-economic and racial groups have called into radio stations pledging support for the Springbok team. One old lady from Soweto called into Talk Radio 702 and spoke of how she has come to love the game during this World Cup and how she would be sitting in front on her television on Saturday evening.

If you would like some ideas of how to give support to the team make sure you stop in at my good friend Eish's blog. He has a post entitled "10 Ways To Show Your Support To The Bokke" - well worth a visit!

What concerns and frustrates me is how all and sundry are so patriotic due to the successes of the national rugby team but when Monday comes and we are faced once more with the stark realities of living in a country with so many challenges, will those who sang "Let us live and strive for freedom" be willing to knuckle down to building the country together?

I remember fondly the incredible sense of nation-building after South Africa won the Rugby World Cup on home soil in 1995. However that was one year into a new democratic dispensation and in a sense, with the eyes of the world focused on the miracle of transformation in our country, it was easier to be totally engaged in the euphoria. 13 years on and we continue to struggle to shake the shackles our past - how easy will it be now to make this World Cup a vehicle of nation-building?

Let's join together and give unequivocal support to our boys for the Final and lets enjoy putting aside the challenges we face daily in our beautiful country. Let's not however forget the fact that there is a reality to face when the final spectator has left the stadium and the final beer is drunk in celebration or disappointment. Each of us has a role to play in nation-building - we cannot expect the success or failure of national sports teams to determine the state of our national psyche over an extended period.

Mistaken Priorities Of Springbok Rugby Fans

I am a passionate South African rugby supporter. I will make every effort to watch every game and will engage in conversation around the team whenever I have the opportunity. With that out of the way, let me get to the reason for this post...

Yesterday's Sunday Times ran a story of how hundreds of Springbok supporters were paying sky-high prices for tickets for the World Cup Semi-Final and Final now that South Africa had progressed so far in the tournament. They quote prices of over R40 000 for tickets advertised on eBay and highlight several local travel agencies that have seen significant increased demand for packages ranging from R35 000 to R200 000. A group of 12 SA businessmen are forking out almost R72 000 a day to hire a 25m luxury yacht - R3000 per hour rate!

It is inconceivable to me that people are willing to take out second mortages on their homes to buy tickets for a rugby match. It concerns me deeply when corporate South Africa says there is no more money for social responsibility projects in the fields of education and health-care. Those travelling to Paris and spending these exorbitant amounts of money will argue that they are being patriotic by supporting their team in a major tournament. I would counter that by saying that true patriotism begins at home when those who have the resources contribute to the greater good of nation-building. Of course fingers will be pointed at those in positions of power who misuse public funds to their own end - yes, this needs to be dealt with severely but is the corruption of public officials sufficient cause to stop the rest of us working at making the country a better place for all?

I do not resent those who will be present at the World Cup final this coming Saturday when South Africa takes on the English. I do not sulk in my lounge armchair and wish that it was me who was there at the game. However, I do question the wisdom of those who in a rush of green-blooded patriotism risked everything to afford a ticket as much as I question those who are spending hundreds of thousands on luxury accommodation and thousands on a ticket to the game.

With recent studies showing that around 5.41 million people in South Africa are living with HIV(including 257,000 children) (source) , the massive housing backlog, the struggle to provide quality education for all children, the need for continued roll-out of basic services to rural areas and the concern for aging infrastructure, it is clear that government, corporate South Africa and individual citizens need to be prioritizing spending to provide 'a better life for all'. It is also clear that those in public office and corporate high office need to be held accountable for money spent inappropriately.

French Visas Needed . . .

With the Springbok rugby team having reached the semi-finals of the Rugby World Cup, the French Consulate has reported a massive increase in the number of applications for visas from South Africans wishing to visit France.

Why the sudden interest? Did rugby fans not have faith in the team that they would progress this far in the tournament? It seems that the biggest demand has come from travel agencies - surely this is a little late in the day to be organising group tours?

The French Consulate in Johannesburg has the following disclaimer on its website - Due to technical reasons or busy circunstances, the Visa Section could be closed without prior notice, either forced to limit the number of applications daily accepted.

I suggest that if you would like to travel to Saint Denis for the final (whether or not the Springboks are playing), you start making application for your visa today!

Springbok Rugby - Historical Tales #2 (video - RSA vs ENG)

It was on 24 October 1999, the quarter-final of the Rugby World Cup, that South Africa removed England from the competition thanks in no small part to the boot of flyhalf Jannie de Beer.

Not only did he add a world record 5 drop goals to the scorecard, he also struck five penalties and two conversions to ensure an historic win for the Boks.

Let's hope that our boys can repeat their winning ways against England on Friday!

Springbok Rugby - Historical Tales #1

As the Rugby World Cup launches in France later tonight, I have decided not to follow the general blogging trend and write match previews, reports and express opinion on the on and off field antics of players and management - the mainline press will do enough of that!

Instead I am going to be writing a series of small posts highlighting something interesting from the history of the South Africa Springbok rugby team.

Today I give you a quote from a book entitled "The Bob Scott Story" by R. W. H. Scott and T. P. Mclean published in 1956.

In the days before teams were flown around this country South Africa had an advantage with distance and altitude which we used to good advantage. In 1949 between the First Test in Cape Town and the second at Ellis Park in Johannesburg we packed the New Zealanders off by train to what was then Rhodesia forcing them to spend 8 out of 11 nights on the train. On their way back their train collided, in the middle of the night, into the rear of a Goods Train. This caused some players to be thrown out of the upper bunks, with one player, Charlie Willocks, a forward, so badly damaged his shoulder that it affected him for the rest of the tour.

And today they moan about food poisoning!

It seems this book is out of print. If anyone knows where to find a copy, please leave a note in the comments.

New Blog of the Week - #7 - Rugby World Cup Guide

With the 2007 edition of the Rugby World Cup only a few weeks away I was delighted to find a blog which is not based on the ramblings of an uninformed fan but is rather written by someone who clearly has a love for the game and is genuinely interested in providing information to others around this fantastic tournament.

The blog is entitled myrugbynews.com and is an independent site giving readers a huge amount of information around the RWC 2007. Categories of information include

- Fixtures / Schedule
- Glossary
- History of The Cup
- Match Summaries
- Pool Stages - Results
- Stadiums
- Statistics
- Supporters Gallery
- Team Odds
- Teams
- Ticket Information
- World Rankings

Details of upcoming friendlies are also posted.

This is the blog of a true fan and I look forward to seeing its development in the weeks to come.

New Blog Of The Week - #6 - A Golfing Blog

Golf I once tried my hand and golf and discovered that it really wasn't my thing! I would far rather spend the day on a cricket field than chasing a small white ball into a hole! What I discovered during the months I spent trying to perfect my swing is that golfers are some of the most passionate people you will ever meet. They live for their game. They want to read about it, learn about it, play it every day and they will spend hours discussing what to the rest of us, seem inane details.

This week's featured blog, Robin On Golf, is written by a true golf fan - Robin Thomas (handicap 18). What makes this blog special though is that although it is clearly written by a passionate participant in the game, it is well-written enough to appeal to those with just a passing interest in the sport, such as myself.

It is still fairly new so there is not a large amount of content. My prediction is that this blog will become very popular over the coming months as long as the content continues to be regular and have wide appeal.

Well done Robin! Keep up the good work!

New Blog Of The Week - #3

I love seeing ordinary people attempting extraordinary things to make an extraordinary difference in the lives of others. The author of this week's "New Blog Of The Week" is certainly doing that.

Taken from the heading of his blog :

Ordinary people tri-ing to do extra-ordinary things to make a difference in the lives of others. We are a group of amateur athletes who have each chosen an extremely difficult event that we will 'tri' and complete in order to raise money for our chosen charity. Our chosen charity is The Smile Foundation, another group of ordinary people doing extra-ordinary things to make a difference in the lives of children in South Africa.

The blog is entitled "Tri-ing To Make A Difference" and details not only the physical journey of the author towards SA Ironman 2008 but also gives an insight into how difficult it is from an emotional point of view.

I will be putting the feed of this blog into my Google Reader to track the author's progress.

Why not drop the author a quick email to give him a wish of encouragement?

I salute those athletes taking part who are putting themselves on the line to help those less fortunate. Well done to them - my best wishes and support to them.

Rugby World Cup Guide For Wives / Girlfriends

The 2007 edition of the Rugby World Cup is a mere two months away. While I am certainly no male chauvinist, I do realise that the couch is going to become a popular place of residence for most South African males. I also realise that this is bound to cause some upset for some relationships!

For the cause of domestic bliss, allow me to direct you to Rugby World Cup Rules For Women - a wonderful piece of writing I found on the SA Rugby Blogs site.

To whet your appetite, here is Rule #1 -

1. From 7 Sep to 20 October 2007, you should read the sports section of the newspaper so that you are aware of what is going on regarding the World Cup, and that way you will be able to join in the conversations. If you fail to do this, then you will be looked at in a bad way, or you will be totally ignored. DO NOT complain about not receiving any attention.

Reconditioned Boks

For 65 minutes I sat thrilled by the rugby at ABSA Park Stadium as the Springboks played a cohesive solid game. I was delighted that our boys were going to beat the All Blacks in their first encounter of the Tri-Nations.

My joy was not long-lived however. The final 15 minutes of the game were a disaster from a South African perspective. Missed tackles, poor defensive work and a back-line at sixes and sevens was not the stuff of world-beaters. I have seen better play at U19 level! This was extremely disappointing as we pretty much had the game wrapped up until we lost concentration and ran out of steam.

We now discover that the Bok coach, Jake White, has called on the guys to become as fit as the All Black squad. This is just mind-boggling to me. When the initial Bok training squad was called together earlier this year, all the players were put through a stringent medical and fitness test. A minumum standard was put in place and selection was informed by the results of these tests. Are we now saying that the minimum standard was too low? Did we not know how much fitter our opposition was going to be? What does that say about the planning and strategy of the Bok coaching staff? Would it have made a difference to Saturday's result if we didn't already have a long injury list this early in the season? Is our bench not as match-ready as that of the All Blacks? Who is asking these questions and to whom are they being directed?

I am a Jake White supporter and believe that he is the man for the job. I am surprised though that he would publicly announce that his team "just ran out of steam" as this raises some difficult questions.

Let's hope that we can get our boys match fit to take on the best the world has to offer come World Cup time. I believe we stand the best chance for a few years now to lift the Webb-Ellis trophy on October 20 - we wait in hope...

Boks Answer To The Haka

This coming Saturday the Springboks face the All Blacks in what is being billed as the most important international rugby fixture outside the Rugby World Cup in France later this year.

It has always thrilled me to watch the New Zealanders perform their traditional 'haka' before each encounter. The passion and intensity is awesome as they try to intimidate the opposition. The opposition is expected to wait and watch while this happens. In an interview with the Daily News, Schalk Burger said,

It's a really tense time, so I just put my head down and wait for it to be over. I obviously respect the haka and I think it's a great tradition.

In the same newspaper, Gary Botha who is due to face his first 'haka' on Saturday said that facing the 'haka' was in fact motivating for the opposition.

Wouldn't it be great if the Springboks could retaliate with something of their own? However in the cultural melting pot that is South Africa, what would they do?

Perhaps a Zulu war dance, a COSATU-style toyi-toyi, volkspele dances, maypole dancing, a Venda snake dance, a San ritual cleansing ceremony, a Xhosa initiation dance? I am not sure that we have our South Africa identity clear enough for any of our national teams to carry onto the field something which is uniquely South African. The national identity crisis is, I'm afraid, still too raw for some elements of our society. What a pity as it would be grand to see the All Blacks receive back what they give. Maybe in a few years' time ...

That all said, I put my full support behind the Boks for Saturday. Let's hope the politicians interfering ways in South African rugby do not scupper preparations again! We have had enough of that already - just let the boys (of all colours) play the game and lets give our island friends a good klap!

Loftus stadium chaos - who is to blame?

Last night Loftus stadium in Pretoria hosted an international club friendly between 2006 Champions League winners Barcelona and current PSL champions Sundowns. By all accounts the game was played in good spirits and it was a great opportunity for local fans to watch one of the world's great clubs play against the best South Africa has to offer.

However the evening was spoilt by problems with ticketing, parking of cars up to 5 deep, double-booked seats and poor policing. I am currently listening to 702 and the calls are streaming in with complaints. I have a few questions to which answers are required :

1) Why were seats double-booked? People arrived to find others in their seats who refused to move and they were forced to watch standing up behind the seating.

2) Where were the officials to check tickets on entry?

3) Is there a system to weed out forged tickets before entry?

4) Why were the traffic police and SAPS not able to control parking in the surrounding streets?

5) Were there trained officials enforcing crowd control?

6) Is the seating at Loftus going to be changed to be more people-friendly? By all accounts it is very confusing especially to those visiting the stadium for the first time.

It would appear that these are problems experienced at Loftus whether the sport is soccer or rugby. Surely this is going to need to be sorted by 2010. I am not sure who is to blame for the poor organisation but I do hope that accountability will be enforced.