To fully understand the magnitude of Siya Kolisi’s appointment as Springbok captain, you have to look into the eyes of the great black players who never got a chance to play for or lead their country in their prime.
You have to listen to the nostalgic tone – that’s tinged with a sense of loss – of players who played in segregated rugby federations, who gave all they could during the dark days and all they got were Springbok jackets, numbers and hand-prints as a form of recognition from their country.
They’d trade it all for a genuine opportunity to stand in front of the world and play for their country. That was not possible for a number of black and coloured players, of course, for a long time and we all know why.
I was lucky to play for the Springboks in 2000, even though rugby politics made sure my stay was brief. But plenty of talented black former players didn’t.They speak reverently about the rugby players who led black rugby federations that the state didn’t recognise – such as the South African Rugby Union (old Saru), the South African Rugby Football Federation, and the South African African Rugby Board (Leopards).
Men such as Peter Mkata, Thompson Magxala, Norman Mbiko, Eric Majola, Francois Davids, Piet Jooste, Cassiem Jabaar, Bomza Nkohla and Themba Ludwaba would give up a whole lot for the opportunity now handed, richly and deservingly, to Kolisi.
To stand with your countrymen and lead them into battle is an honour that’s never to be underestimated or downplayed – as some in media circles have tried to do since Kolisi became the leading contender for the captaincy.It’s this rich black Springbok history that makes me sure that he will not take the opportunity for granted. James Baldwin once said:  “Your crown has already been paid for – all you have to do is wear it.”
All the black former players have paid for Kolisi’s crown; all he has to do is stride out against England at Ellis Park and wear it proudly. New Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has so far displayed an innate sense of getting the cultural balance in the Springbok team right, firstly by bringing back Mzwandile Stick into the management fold and then by choosing Kolisi as skipper.
This shows that Kolisi’s appointment is not merely a transformation box-ticking exercise – at least not to the naked eye.Rassie understands that Kolisi is the one player who has the ability to get the whole team and country to rally behind him.
He is the one person who makes it easy to love and support the Boks. You want him to do well and you know he has the capabilities to succeed on the field too.
These were all the things we expected from previous Bok coach Allister Coetzee. “Toetie”, as he is affectionately known, was meant to be the flag-bearer for getting a more inclusive Springbok team, and thereby an inclusive South African rugby culture.
At the first hurdle, he chucked Stick from a moving train and SA Rugby demoted him to the under-20 side. Then, a golden opportunity to ingratiate the Boks and himself in the hearts of many South Africans presented itself when captain Warren Whiteley suffered an injury during the second Test against France last year.
The Boks were going into a third game in Johannesburg 2-0 up in the series, with nothing to lose and everything to gain if Kolisi led the team at the iconic Ellis Park stadium.Toetie blew the chance and appointed Kolisi’s deputy at the Stormers, Eben Etzebeth, instead.
Toetie’s eagerness to please the white conservatives who still pull strings in rugby clouded his judgment.Erasmus, however, has had the intuition to do the opposite. Stick is back in the dugout and Kolisi has been named captain in the three-Test series against England – the most significant of the two opponents that the Boks will face this winter, the other being Wales.
The nation has already rallied behind Kolisi and there are comfortably more people who wish him to succeed than those who wish him the opposite. He espouses what it means to be a Springbok.He has had opportunities to take his talents overseas but he felt he had to make his mark in his country first. Plenty of times he has put his body on the line for the team cause and, let’s not forget, he prefers to wear the No 7 jumper but he is no less committed with the famous No 6 on his back. You’ll never hear him complain.
Kolisi’s appointment wasn’t the only thing Erasmus got right. Former Border three-quarters Lukhanyo Am and Makazole Mapimpi have been included in the national team. The latter was easily the best South African winger last year, top scoring in almost every major competition he played in and creating nearly 30 tries in one calendar year.
Yet he was overlooked for the end-of-year tour to Europe while Am managed a measly three minutes in the last match against Wales.The pair’s inclusion doesn’t only shame Toetie’s selection policies, though.
Those who have allowed Border Rugby to sink into the mire should also bow their heads in shame for letting the union plunge into financial ruin yet again. Am and Mapimpi are both direct products of a wonderful talent-spotting system in the region, which succeeds on the virtues of casting the net as wide as the rural areas.
Mapimpi shone at the Southern Kings, at the Cheetahs and at the Sharks and few would bet against him crossing the white line against England and doing his trademark “please call me” celebration dance.
For more Mapimpis to come to the fore Border must get its house in order, and SA Rugby cannot sit back and fold its arms while the reservoir of black rugby in the Eastern Cape is allowed to be contaminated.
There is plenty of talent still to come from the Border region – as the Walter Sisulu University’s “All Blacks” have shown – and it cannot get stifled by poor administration.I hope the selection of Am and Mapimpi serves as both a lesson and an inspiration for Border’s affairs to be in place...