Go, Bokke … (Well, most of the time)

Rugby bamboozles me. It must be passing the ball backwards and running forward at the same time. I have also never played rugby — if you exclude a couple of games of that sissy sport touch rugby. Of course, that qualifies me to write an article on rugby. And that’s being more ambitious than wanting to become a South African rugby administrator.

So let’s start with what I (kinda) know … soccer, football, jog bonito. In the competitive world of local soccer, the words “the ball is round” still rings supreme. Sepp Herberger once said that, and this phrase has entered into dressing rooms across the globe. It is also the best way to motivate for a crazy tactical proposition — as in, the ball is round, so it might work. To motivate a team — as in when a team is getting a hiding — the ball is round, so this team might still win. But ponder this in rugby: the ball is oval — so much more unpredictability and possibilities. Perhaps, even a black flyhalf at the next World Cup.

The ball is oval — somehow, I cannot imagine the disciplinarians at Kamp Staaldraad appreciating the philosophical tone of this. But Jake White and Eddie Jones could easily share a word or two on this. The evidence is that the current team look like they have a plan, instead of “Ten Minutes of Monster Tackles” and a reliance on a kicking flyhalf. We also have the players — the ball might be oval, but drop-kicking an oval ball is something else, and Francois Steyn is among the best. JP might be a little shaky on the high ball, but has match-winning abilities. Matfield reigns supreme. And our number nine — that’s the scrumhalf position, I am told — knows a gap on the blind side. Bryan Habana can reel in a try line like few others. Percy and Butch look great as a combination. Add to that a relatively easy route to the final, although Argentina as most probable semifinalists are looking really good. The Boks thus have a great opportunity to win the Webb Ellis Trophy — that’s nicknamed Bill, or so the rugby aficionados tell me.

So, as you might have guessed, I support the Springbok team. I often wonder why.

The toppies in my neighbourhood think I have gone soft. When watching games, they yell all sorts of witty obscenities against the rugby team, but especially the cricket team. (And you have never heard anyone swear until it is in a mix of Gujarati and Afrikaans.) The swearing will stop for a little while as Bryan Habana goes for the try line (or, in the case of cricket, Hashim Amla or Ashwell Prince hit the ball sweetly through covers), but will resume soon after that. The reasons are pretty much what Steven Friedman has argued in a very perceptive article on cricket. To which we might add that the histories of non-racial sports people are not recognised in a democratic South Africa.

These toppies will always spot the old South African flag. That flag — still seen in rugby games — irks and offends me. I cannot argue that someone should be stopped from waving it, but last time I checked we had a new one for us all. Then there is the sporting trivia, which says that a current player is a son to an old Springbok player. It is said so nonchalantly when representing the old white South African team cannot be compared to the honour of representing a democratic South Africa. Moreover, it once again wipes out the histories of players of colour who could have played at the highest level but who were never given the chance.

I also cannot figure out why, after 13 years, we still struggle to find players that reflect our diversity. The team might still be pale — but don’t blame the players; surely every professional aspires to represent his or her country. However, let’s begin to look at the current programmes aimed at development of players across the country, and see what works and what does not. Our starting point is to provide all South African children with access to coaching and facilities.

But, come the start of the match, I will scream “Go, Bokke”, simply because I am South Africans. I recognise that it will be a patriotic and (hopefully) momentary lapse in critical thinking. Will it, I wonder, contradict my view that the pace of transformation in sport is too slow, and that great personalities in non-racial sport before apartheid are not recognised today?

To explain this, all I can say is: “The ball is round, the ball is oval.”