Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Rugby must change in the open
IT IS to be hoped Heyneke Meyer’s Springboks can now
focus on rugby matters after the furore surrounding
the composition of the World Cup squad over the last
month.
And, maybe, their performance in England will be a lot
better than the South African Rugby Union’s (Saru) han-
dling of the whole situation.
Their silence on trade union federation Cosatu’s con-
cerns that the team doesn’t reflect the demographics of the
country was deafening, while Saru president Oregan
Hoskins blaming the lack of transformation at schoolboy
level was flimsy at best.
Reports emerged from the Boks’ training base in Durban
last week that Meyer was told that his squad must be made
up of 30 percent black players.
In the end, eight players of colour walked down the green
and gold carpet last night – a touch below the required num-
ber. However, Saru was quiet about that as well.
Meyer smiled and answered in the affirmative when he
was asked if he was happy about the make-up of his squad.
But his selections over the past two months suggest that he
may not be entirely happy.
Especially because a few regulars like Marcell Coetzee
didn’t make it, while Siya Kolisi, who only played a couple of
minutes for the Boks off the bench this year, was included.
If it is true that Saru ordered Meyer to pick at least eight
black players in the team, they should have come out and
said so from the beginning so that everybody, including the
coach and the players, knew where they stood.
A player like Rudy Paige, a black scrumhalf from the Bulls
who was arguably the best South African in his position
during Super Rugby, was picked ahead of Cobus Reinach, a
regular for the Boks this year.
Meyer should have blooded Paige in the Rugby Champi-
onship to get some experience going into a World Cup. He is
good enough, and has shown it for the Bulls.
Reinach, who was relatively poor for the Sharks this year,
has been left out and there may be a bit of an uproar. But
this could have easily been avoided if Paige had been given
a chance to show his mettle.
It’s unfair on both black and white players, as well as the
rugby-loving public, to be kept in the dark. SA Rugby needs
to be more transparent when it comes to transformation. Si-
lence and flimsy comments are only making things worse.