On Tuesday, 22 October Dale College’s Craven Week centre Somila Jho completed his transfer from the Dale College, the Border powerhouse school in King William’s Town to Kingswood College in Grahamstown. The move was made possible by the Eastern Province Kings. As a Grade-12 student next year, Jho was expected to be a key player in the Dale 1st XV under returning legendary scho0l head coach Griffy Griffiths. Jho will however be under-19 in 2014 and therefore ineligible for Craven Week reselection. The player loss is a setback for Dale and there is constant talk of other star players at the school being approached by other schools in co-ordination with provincial rugby unions.
The Kings offer comes with the opportunity to play Currie Cup under-19 A-division rugby against most of the best players Jho’s own age next season, while he is still in matric. In order to take advantage, Jho simply had to be much closer to the Kings home base in Port Elizabeth. Under-19 junior provincial rugby represents the next step up for aspiring schoolboy rugby players who are considering making a career out of the sport.
The conflict of interests between schools and provincial unions seems to be playing itself out more often in the Border region these days than in any other part of South Africa.
In 2012, Border Rugby Union refused to select several talented school players who fulfilled all requirements and had the earned right to go to Craven Week along with the Border under-18 team simply because these boys had signed contracts with other unions for rugby after school.
For this season Queens College lost the services of their SA HP 2012 under-16 lock Aston Fortuin after the Bulls had made an approached and helped relocate him to a school in Pretoria where he could be eligible for one of their under-18 provincial week teams and hsimultaneously help fulfil a quota requirement.
@kcman: I don’t think he meant that it happened at Kingswood, he was rather being facetious in that it has happened at some school, and may happen at KC.
I personally don’t know KC to be fussed about rankings.
@rugbyfan: I agree, Grey College is the undisputed truly great rugga school, I don’t think we have ever bothered with the rankings quite honestly because we never gonna be right up there, not possible with our numbers. I would like to hear what Gungets has to say regarding this.
@kcman: At least GCB does not have worry about the ranking we are always number 1
@Gungets Tuft: Elaborate on your rankings story, what has this got to do with Kingswood?
@GHT: No approach was made by Kingswood to the boy involved, fact.
@Queenian: Eish! I wish Dale had as much luck with Grey as QC does. We just can’t seem to get those boys, they’ve been our real voodoo team for the last 13 years.
But you’re right hey…to have so much exodus and still compete…something special there.
@Queenian: @Playa: Agree with you I always back your two schools nothing give me more joy than seen them win.
@Playa: The only thing that brings me pleasure each year after all this raping of Dale and Queens boys happens is when they beat these same schools that benefit from there hard work.
Grey PE will have a very good side this year but come May and the Rec bekon’s them we will see.
@Playa: I also hear viva the grapevine that 1 x Dale and 1 x Queens Under 13 boys from this year will be wearing the light blue of Grey PE next year.
@Playa: This painful picture will carry on I see that the Bull’s are trying to pull a move on one of the Queens wings at present which is a disgrace.
@All Black: @Gungets Tuft: I can’t think of a single KZN school that would stoop to this!
@beet: That is a painful picture…and sadly, it will only get worse.
@All Black: I will buy you a beer at the Shamrock we can talk about the mania for rankings in KZN, and from the horses mouth.
Don’t underestimate the power of the rankings in certain spots, and the “street cred” that seems to come with it. I don’t think it’s the boys, but the parent … eeisch, and harassing a headmaster about it nogal, with the head not having the cojones to tell the parents to take it to the pub and to stop bothering him. It makes it clear that the rankings are a key component of school marketing, with the kids the “product”. Almost makes you want to refer to teams as SKUs
@Gungets Tuft: Please tell me that this was not a KZN school questioning the rankings? All that does is give the rankings credibility. Do you know who did it? In my opinion this shows a serious lack of understanding of why schools are playing sport. Sad,sad,sad.
Comment by Rockspider
@Beet. This is the first time the Kings take a boy from a Border School. The Bulls have been doing it year on year.
First the Selborne Lock went up North. Played Under 16 High Performance and Bulss under 18 for 2 years and made SA Schools in 2013 and 2012.
Border under 13 Scrum Half 2011 from Aliwal North was placed at Waterkloof in the beginning of 2012 .
Fortuin was taken from Queens after making SA under 16 in 2012 last year.
This year 2 under 15 Boys were taken from Dale ( Flank and Centre) to the Bulls in the beginning of the year. They both played Bulls under 16 this year Both were placed at Southdowns. Kwezi Mafu made the SA Under 16 High Performance side ( in his under 15 year).
They are also currently in the process of taking another loose forward up to Southdowns. ( Southdowns or Bulls)
Just no way in stopping the movements. With all the provinces committed to filling quotas in Craven week, Vodacom Cup and Currie Cup the Border region will always be tapped for talent.
@GHT: Look it could well be a smokescreen. Anything is possible. At the end of the day it’s a decision made by SJ and his family taking their situation into account.
I don’t think there is any denying that Kingswood are going to benefit tremendously from this acquisition and that Dale will be a weakened team as a result of his departure.
All unions treat financing as a highly confidential matter so I doubt the exact numbers will ever come to light. The Kings are helping out with tuition* at Kingswood as I understand and SJ will be available for EP u19 selection which he would not have been had he stayed in KWT. It does not seem like he has a contract for 2014 (something that might have changed as the nature of the deal changed with Kingswood’s involvement) but he will be on the Kings books in 2015 if all goes well.
My guess without knowing the exacts is that the Kings will cap their expenses at a max of R30k and passing on all travel expenses to Kingswood. I base this on the player only being available for half the u19 season. This would still be a big saving for them. That would obviously mean that Kingswood are in for well over R100k. But as I say that would be my guess.
Kingswood’s are willingness to state that it was a Kings deal first, suggests that’s exactly how things were set up. Going to Kingswood over Edu College must have been a huge incentive though. Even if unhappy about a specific issue, I think staying at Dale would still have beaten enrolling at Edu College.
I do believe that Kingswood will now work hard to help him get the best possible matric pass.
Beet is there any way of getting confirmation from the Kings as per your article is this youngster being placed at Kingswood by the Kings academy or as Gungets tuft says is this just a smoke screen by Kingswood to improve their side for next year.
@McCulleys Workshop: Perhaps that’s it, struggling a little, pushy parents complain to the headmaster that the rankings are poor (implying that he is not doing his job), so the head phones the rating man an demands a meeting.
As for the other stuff, ja, well, faaine. Seems daft that any school takes real notice of the rankings, much less actually take the rankings man to task for them
@McCulleys Workshop: what is the definition of a new school?
@Gungets Tuft: That wouldn’t have happened in KZN, our schools have long standing tradition and values, and are well rounded, excelling at many disciplines.
It must have been one of the new schools battling to market themselves and find their way into the inner circle.
@kcman: For someone who wants to be at Kingswood it seems to have taken him a long time to do the deed, or did he or his folks just win the lottery?
Sorry bru, hear it all the time, when kids move school this late. Personally, I think it is a smokescreen, no way would he have upped and moved in Grade 11 because he was suddenly able to. If you move in your (as near as dammit) final year of school, you have been made an offer you can’t refuse, such as a pro contract, or the kind of offer that says “if you aren’t at X school your chances are that much lower …”.
Under those circumstances, which kid wouldn’t “want to be there”.
In KZN, as an U19, he would not be allowed to play against KZN opposition due to the headmasters agreement. Well, sort of, he could have (true stories) :
1. Done a month of Grade 10, then repeated grade 11
2. Snuck in under the radar, played 2nd team for the rest of his school life, sneaking the odd match for the 1st’s when nobody was paying attention.
I am with GHT, they should have left the boy where he was, unless Kingswood were keen to have him, it doesn’t do their team any real harm, except for the poor sucker who has been there for 4 years and now sucks the hind t#t.
Shoo, any time now Kingswood will be phoning the okes that devise the schools rankings and demanding a meeting to explain their schools “poor ranking” .. (another true story!!)
@GHT: One thing I would love to see is the return of the Dale vs. Graeme derby.
Firstly I want to say I would like to see all school boy rugby in Grahamstown strong it is really a great place to watch SBR what a vibe in Grahamstown in rugby season on a Saturday especially on a derby day between any of the schools. I would also like to say that I think the way Kingswood are going about improving there competitiveness on the rugby field is great bringing the talent in at a young age nurturing them into the ethos and traditions of a great school.
Having said all this when I read this article something is not right I do not know this boy or his situation but I do not believe that the Kings are paying for him to go to Kingswood the Kingswood fees must be in excess of R150000 per year they just don’t have that kind of money it would shorly make him the highest paid SBR player is he that good I can’t even see the Kings paying more than R40000 a year to retain his services in the province when he leaves school if the Kings were really behind this buy why not put him in a school in Port Elizabeth where they can monitor him and assist him in what he needs there are some great rugby playing school there and if he could not make it there you would know sooner rather than later.
On the boys side as we all know a education for a rugby player is so important with the likelihood of injury and only 15 boys make it to the Boks I also know the Kings Academy as all good academy’s should be are very strict on studying after school so one of my first concerns would be that Kingswood right the IEB matric exam not the government exam is this boy going to be able to make the change at this late stage with all the pressure of playing rugby for school and province are Kingswood prepared to guarantee that he passes so that he can get on to NMMU the following year because to give rugby a go after school you need to at least play varsity cup and U21 for your province this is just the start.
Would the kings not be better off leaving this young guy at Dale so that he has the best chance of getting the best matric he can and paying him a retainer so that they can secure his services when he finishes school the Bulls and Sharks have been doing this at Queens for years.
@kcman: This is the beauty of the blog and comments. People can share there opinions and I don’t think it hurts if some or even all come here and say I’m wrong or they don’t agree with my points of view.
The article itself was not intended to knock the two schools or the player involved. I did wanted to address a potentially controversial topic though: the type of overlap between provincial rugby union and school rugby where there can only be one winner and therefore by consequence has to be a loser.
My feeling with regards to the unhappiness at Dale that you have mentioned but which is left out of the article is that yes this might be a motive for wanting to leave but in relation to the Union offer it surely can’t be a priority.
A provincial rugby union is not going to recruit a player just because he is unhappy in his current environment. They are going to recruit him because he is a good enough rugby player to fit in with their plans. The primary motivation for a youngster is to represent the province and do well in rugby after school and hopefully make the pros one day. That pull factor is touched on in the article which I say again is about union vs school.
It was not an attempt to justify or criticise Kingswood for enrolling SJ.
@kcman: Do you really think that a rugby union should be involved in providing school fee funding or making decisions as to where a pupil attends school, and those decisions being in the pupils final year? Think about it.
@beet: You are still failing to come to the point that SJ does not want to be at Dale, he wants to be at Kingswood and this is the fact you keep missing.
Kingswood only has 3 terms and the last school fixture is played on the first weekend of August, so none of the school rugby affects EP U19 Rugby preparation, in fact he will be far more match fit than his team mates who have been playing shadow drills the whole year.
At Kingswood he will have full access to a Biokineticist, Physiotherapist, a Conditioning Coach, as well as teachers and mentors who will only have his well-being at heart, a matric at Edu-College will hardly help with the network Kingswood will open up to him for dealings should his rugby career fail.
EP Rugby Academy might be sponsoring him but I can further assure you that they are not footing the entire bill and I am sure the College is also helping in some way.
I just think this whole matter has blown totally out of hand because of the search for sensationalism and the refusal to state the facts from the very beginning.
@beet: Im of that exact same concern
@kcman:
I can well understand the importance of academics to the family.
As much as rugby institutes use education as a marketing tool, the truth is kids find it incredibly difficult to devote the time and energy to both rugby and academics at a level required to succeed in either or. As a result many drop out or fail at one or the other.
My question is what do you think the incentive is for the Kings to move SJ to KC?
If I was a running the EP rugby academy first prize, knowing that in order to make a success of rugby, academics has to take a backseat. I would want to have access to my player everyday IOW close by and free of school rugby and other school sport commitments if possible). The Edu-College option satisfies these requirement AND it comes at a fraction of the cost.
So now we have a rugby academy forking out a lot more money to have a player further away and tied up in other commitments, the most obvious being that when the u19 Currie Cup A-section season kicks off, SJ will still be playing rugby for KC in the 3rd term???
I also learnt from the Gideon Koegelenberg experience last year that the 2nd half of the u19 CC season is also the run in to matric trial exams. So not ideal for a school student at all.
@kcman: Dalians will fit in anywhere, that is how we are moulded
Glad to hear the boys are doing well.
I am sure the boys will focus on getting a win at City Lords and not involve themselves in trying to hurt the young man…ja maybe a BIG hello in the first 5 minutes just to wake him up
@Playa: I for one hope that Dale get it right so that a kid is so committed to the College that no matter what the offer was, he would not leave his school until he matriculated.
I can see 15 Dalians running after him to take him down at the end of May on City Lords, that I know for sure, they are not going to be sympathetic to his move at all.
Those boys in the Kingswood u15 side who moved from Dale have really fitted in and are acquitting themselves very well on the sports field, as well as in the classroom.
SJ has been given a wonderful opportunity, he is the only one who can decide if it has been a good move, I sincerely hope it has for his sake and for Kingswood.
@kcman: I think I mentioned in a previous discussion that Somila was linked to a move to Queens earlier this year.So he has been unhappy at Dale, and is well within his rights to leave. I am also on record saying that I find nothing wrong with a school approaching a boy and offering them a bursary/scholarship as a result of his sporting ability.
We lost a couple of under 14 players from last year that turned up for KC under 15s this year. I never had a problem with that. Disappointed yes, but all is fair, cant complain. I cannot all of a sudden throw my toys in this particular case. My only problem here is when unions are making these decisions.This is not the first time either.The 2011 hooker, Simanga was taken by the Lions in his matric year and placed at Parktown Boys to complete his matric. There is the Fortuin case from Queens, who has been placed by the Bulls at that private school in Pretoria, the Marne Coetzee matter, the list goes on.
There certainly are reasons why boys leave Dale, and we as old boys are aware of this and are working to address them.We can do our best to compete against other schools (raise funds to match bursaries, improve infrastructure and facilities, jack up academics etc), but no school can compete with the rugby unions.It’s like being a welterweight at 65kg preparing to fight a Manny Picquo, only to find that it’s a 115kg Mike Tyson that is actually in the ring.That is where my problem starts and ends.
And schools desperate to improve their rugby will get littered by these contracted boys, other boys will resent them for ‘taking their places’, other schools will resent them too for playing party to union greed etc. and a whole mess will just spiral.
I will never make excuses for Dale. The wheels came off and now we’re rebuilding.I realistically expect the exodus to continue for some time while things get right…but to compete with union coffers is a bit too much to ask of any school
Somila Jho Facts:
– Somila Jho was not happy with Dale as his school of choice.
– Somila Jho had approached other schools in his own personal capacity to look for a change of schools.
– EP Kings Academy subsequently ‘contracted’ Somila Jho and arranged for him to do his matric at ‘Edu-College’ in PE.
– A decision was then taken by Somila Jho’s parents, his brother who is at EP KINGS and EP KINGS to let Somila do his matric at KC (more an academic choice than a rugby one)
– Sponsorship has come through EP Kings.
Now if a child is not happy being at a school, surely it is his democratic right to leave and seek education elsewhere or am I completely wrong.
It seems as though most people on this blog are of the opinion that because a child is a talented rugby player, he has absolutely no right to move schools, come guys let’s get real now. He has the right to an education where he deems it may work out best for him.
Where are Dale being hard done by? I have always been a great fan of Dale but maybe Dale need to go and have a look at why kids are leaving in their droves, they are looking for new pastures and in fact make it very easy for scouts to “poach” them.
Maybe Playa and the Old Dalians should squeeze the truth out of the powers at Dale College and ask why so many boys are leaving nowadays, I know it’s not healthy but Dale need to come up with the solution and I for one sure hope they do because they have always been a respected school, maybe this is just a blip on the radar.
Firstly I want to say I would like to see all school boy rugby in Grahamstown strong it is really a great place to watch SBR what a vibe in Grahamstown in rugby season on a Saturday especially on a derby day between any of the schools. I would also like to say that I think the way Kingswood are going about improving there competitiveness on the rugby field is great bringing the talent in at a young age nurturing them into the ethos and traditions of a great school.
Having said all this when I read this article something is not right I do not know this boy or his situation but I do not believe that the Kings are paying for him to go to Kingswood the Kingswood fees must be in excess of R150000 per year they just don’t have that kind of money it would shorly make him the highest paid SBR player is he that good I can’t even see the Kings paying more than R40000 a year to retain his services in the province when he leaves school if the Kings were really behind this buy why not put him in a school in Port Elizabeth where they can monitor him and assist him in what he needs there are some great rugby playing school there and if he could not make it there you would know sooner rather than later.
On the boys side as we all know a education for a rugby player is so important with the likelihood of injury and only 15 boys make it to the Boks I also know the Kings Academy as all good academy’s should be are very strict on studying after school so one of my first concerns would be that Kingswood right the IEB matric exam not the government exam is this boy going to be able to make the change at this late stage with all the pressure of playing rugby for school and province are Kingswood prepared to guarantee that he passes so that he can get into NMMU the following year because to give rugby a go after school you need to at least play varsity cup and U21 for your province this is just the start.
Would the kings not be better off leaving this young guy at Dale so that he has the best chance of getting the best matric he can and paying him a retainer so that they can secure his services when he finishes school the Bulls and Sharks have been doing this at Queens for years.
@Grasshopper: Don’t go there. You opening up a closed can.
@Grasshopper: GH are you correct re the GW scenario? Were all parties transparent upfront, the union, the school and the parents involved? And you seem to forget the HMA which exists in KZN re 19 year old players. Why leave PTA and the Beeld trophy due to being ineligible because of age, to arrive in KZN where there are also age restrictions via the HMA. In my humble opinion the only winner was the union, and certainly if the HMA was in place prior his arrival, GW deserved the allegations leveled against them, if and only if, they tried to play him locally against the provisions of the HMA. It is also important for the union to respect the HMA and not arrive at some degree of autonomy outside of proper collaboration with the schools that make up the HMA.
@Ploegskaar: I just believe that kids should have options.There are successful ‘unschooled’ people out there, and there are plenty.But one thing they will tell you is that they had options to exercise.
I have a mate who played professional cricket, even played for the Proteas.He’s 31 and retired (due to injuries). Hated cricket for the most part of his career (he had no choice, he got a Border contract while still at school and his career was already determined). The only things he finds himself doing now in retirement are cricket-related.He tells me everyday that he wishes he could do something else…he even studied a marketing course, to open up his options, but its now collecting dust because he doesn’t know what to do with it…all he knows is cricket.He is fortunately from a well-off background so he is not struggling financially in the true sense of the word…though he’s had to change his lifestyle, sell some property he’d acquired in his playing days etc. Sport is a cut-throat industry, and it must NEVER be one’s ONLY option.
@Playa: I note and respect your opinion on the matter. As long as we agree that a gr.12 certificate or a tertiary education is not necessarily the only avenue or a guarantee for success in life. A shot at something is after all better than a shot in the dark, which is what awaits most of his peers. Maybe I just know too many “unschooled” individuals that have been successful in life, or maybe I believe too much emphasis is placed on learning how to do something, as opposed to actually doing something.
@Ploegskaar: To be honest, I would not allow this for my son. If he is that talented, surely the union can wait. They do so for the majority of contracted under 19 players, don’t they?
Top academic
Worry not so much on him passing,but a drop in marks may jeorpadise his options. I wanted to be a CA until 2nd year of varsity and changed.Very few career is determined while in high school
Swap Kings for Microsoft or RMB
My second and third sentences above under Top Academic applies. Whatever he does for a company must not interfere with the 6 subjects he needs to pass at the end of the year.
Secondly, companies, be it EP or Microsoft, have no place in deciding schools for kids.
Any other school
If an offer does not come from the school itself, I would never consider.Nothing wrong with a school approaching a boy and offering them a bursary…everything wrong with a union approaching a boy and placing them at a school.I do not want my son being controlled by an entity that is only interested in only one aspect of his life.Whereas, a school faces reputational risk (amongst other) if they jeopardise a child’s academic prospects for their own gain.
Point is, universities and technikons will guarantee you a place to study for 3 years or whatever only once you have your matric. This is a one year contract…one shot to make an impression.Not the sort of thing I would .Did I mention that SJ had a knee problem that kept him out for a large part of his 2013 season?
I really wish SJ well, and I am confident that KC will do all they can to ensure that all the concerns I have don’t materialise, and I hope to God that they don’t.I could be overreacting here.I am just weary of the big bad unions…I have seen first hand how youngsters are chewed and spat out.KC are a victim to this scam.
Would we have had this discussion if we substituted SBR player with top academic scholar, EP Kings with Microsoft or RMB, and Kingswood with KES/Bishops/Hilton or any other school elsewhere in the country for that matter? Probably not, and maybe not the best analogy, but the fact is that his talent has been identified, he has a contract (albeit short term) and he has the opportunity to further develop and earn a living (maybe even quite a decent one) from said talent.
In my opinion he is clearly a sight better off than most of his peers that still have to enter the current tertiary academic and job market in South Africa, and more importantly, if your boy had this opportunity, would you have denied him that?
@Queenian: Eish! It’s gonna be tough years ahead hey
@Mike: I cannot and will not blame Kingswood here. It would be unreasonable to think they’d say no (though I do wish they would
). But either way, the union would just find another school, so it wouldn’t solve anything. On the academic front, KC can only do so much. If the boy needs to be in PE for 2 out of the 5 schooldays in a week, there’s not much KC can do.Unless they provide a private tutor to go with him. There are a number of away games in a CC season, that is a lot of travelling and time away from school…at a crucial time of the year nogal.Maybe I just need a bit more detail on the fine print of this contract, I may be blowing things out of proportion here.I just cannot see KC having control over a player that has been forced onto them.Heck, there’s probably a clause in his contract that limits the number of games he can play for KC…who knows?
Remember, post matrics were taken and were put on a school run program…the school had control over the activities, and how the boys managed their time.Also, and more importantly…post matrics were boys who had already attained a matric certificate…which is not the case here.
@Mike: just to add the boy was under 19, legally in matric and moved to needing to be closer to the Sharks for practice, same scenario here but between provinces…he was not allowed to play Beeld trophy due to age so made sense for him to move for his career…
@Mike: I wish that was the case a couple of years ago with Marne Coetzee and Glenwood. Glenwood and Marne were badly burnt by some of our local rivals and it hurt Glenwood’s reputation. It was shocking to say the least, the other schools had no regard for the boys feelings or aspirations….hope it never happens again. Kingswood might feel the animosity going forward…
Huge loss for Dale unfortunately, but as far as I can tell , Kingswood really can’t and shouldn’t take any of the blame here. If a union approaches your school with a craven week player and says take him and we’ll pay, you’re not likely to turn that down. I do believe that the academics should come first, but that is something Kingswood is going to have to manage now. The responsibility is in their hands to make sure SJ does well academically, which I’m sure they will. Remember Kingswood has offered post matric for years now so it won’t be the first time they’ve had to encounter a rugby first – academics second student. A little while back half their 1st Xv was post matric. All I can say is that he’s better off at a good private school academically than a government school in The Bay like Pearson or Muir.
@Playa: My sources say the stories around the young flyhalf at Dale leaving is a load of rubbish.
@Playa: I am afraid to say that Dale and Queens will have to put up with a lot more of this type of poaching in the years to come.
But I believe even with this they will still be competitive so let us see how 2014 goes I think Dale will actually be quite good this coming year maybe even the Border no 1 so not all is lost.
If you look at Dale’s age group this year I think they still have some talent there and with Griffy back you can never tell.
@Playa: Agreed this are heading in a sour direction.
No matric certificate is needed for professional rugby,but when playing rugby you need the matric certification in case a career ending injury get you.
I know their not concerned about school but they have to know what best for the boy and not about themselves solely.
Pro Rugby is something one can play for about 10-15 years then after hanging your boots one could go out and study whatever he wanted to and with no matric then, you probably struggle to get yourself together after 5 or so year after retirement.
@burra: But this is not the case here.The union has contracted the boy and placed him in a school with the intention of using him in the under 19 CC.Both the school and the boy have to sing to the union’s tune.
Balancing is what happens in the confines of the school. Rugby unions are all about rugby, not balance.The school and the boy will have to meet the demands of the union no matter how ridiculous.I am trying very hard not to be negative about this,but look at the ridiculous demands schools have made on boys with bursaries…now tell me how big a chance is there for unions to give a stuff about a boy’s balance.Fact of the matter is that one does not need to have a matric certificate to become a professional rugby player, and there is therefore no motivation for unions to ensure that kids do well at school.There is a major disconnect there.
Things are heading in a sour direction for SBR.
@McCulleys Workshop: Couldn’t have said it better myself.
Glad to see it’s not only a KZN problem where Glenwood got burnt, it’s down to greedy unions who can’t wait for players to finish their schooling. Not great for Dale but huge gain for Kingswood, however much much schoolboy rugby will he really play if he is that good….
@burra: We are back to Beets debate on the interference at SBR level by the unions. They certainly have a role to play, (like creating a panel of scouts who are watching as many games as possible on a weekend to feed the info into the CW selection process) but should they be identifying out of province players and encouraging them to attend (favouring) certain schools? And is there an offer of higher honours?Leaves one wondering. The only positive is that it is probably happening in many unions, and is not unique to KZN or EP. The result, schools start boycotting playing against schools that are filled with union acquisition players.
@McCulleys Workshop: I get your point. All I was saying is that its in the boys interest to put in that extra effort and work by all means to be on track with school and balance it with rugby.
Some boys are playing CC with Varsity studies too, (their balancing). The boy should weigh himself to see it he can face the big challenge and if not then I guess rugby will have to take a pause at that time until the boy is matriculated and has his certificate.
@burra: I wish I could agree but I can’t, the stats as highlighted by Meadows on another current thread shows how few CW players are still playing at CC level. What do you do after injury or a non event career?
@Playa: its not fully good for the boy but you’ve got to try understand that it in the boys interest to try and balance School work and rugby.
Its hard but it has to be done for the sake of achieving good things in life.
@McCulleys Workshop: Akhona Nela at Glenwood?
@Playa: Human Trafficing – hire, rent, fire all in a matric year. Interestingly a border player was offered a bursary to a KZN school after playing GK for border. He is in his final year, played CW for KZN, and is trying to get on with his matric studies. He was recently told that if he didn’t play cricket for the school the week before last, he wouldn’t be given his testimonial, as he is on a sports bursary – the guy just wanted to get on with his studying. There is no guarantee of success in rugby nor an injury free career, matric is an important year, Unions should be sanctioned from this type of interference.
Devastating loss for the College…but I’m sure the young man is excited, and looking forward to this. All the best for him, and I hope things work out or the best for the lad.Kingswood have gained here.
But I guess this is where things are going in schoolboy rugby. Unions will use their power and leverage to dictate where kids play.So sad!
@burra: Is this really what’s best for the boy? I am not just concerned because this hits home, but shouldn’t a grade 12’s main focus be to pass matric…and well?I cannot ever agree with professionalising schoolboy rugby.It is a sad fact that that is the direction it is going.
Sad News for Dale good news for the youngster and a good opportunity for him to fulfil his rugby dream of becoming a professional.
Schools are heart broken when a good player leaves them but you have to remember that the services of that player won’t be so long and we (the school) have to know what’s best for the lads and unfortunately let them go and live their dream if such opportunity came their way