South African players abroad the reason why they won the Rugby World Cup, not something to be criticised
After beating England 32-12 in the Rugby World Cup Final last year, South Africa became world champions for the third time. Although South Africans were ecstatic with the national side lifting the ultimate prize in rugby, there still remains lingering concerns over the state of rugby in the country itself with many of its stars plying their trade at club level abroad. However, rather than seeing it as a negative, South African fans should embrace it as the main reason why the Springboks lifted the Webb Ellis trophy is down to a number of their best players playing in foreign leagues.
Heading into the Rugby World Cup, players already plying their trade abroad included Faf de Klerk at Sale, Franco Mostert at Gloucester, Francois Louw at Bath, Cheslin Kolbe at Toulouse and Willie le Roux in Japan. A number of these players, especially de Klerk and Kolbe, are key starters in the Springbok side and have taken their games to another level as a result of leaving South Africa and playing in Europe.
Back in 2017, having fallen out of favour in the Springbok setup, scrum-half Faf de Klerk made the decision to swap Johannesburg and the Lions for Manchester and Gallagher Premiership side Sale Sharks. Very quickly in his first season at the club it became clear that Sale had a gem on their hands and just a year after signing him de Klerk was back starting for South Africa in the 2018 Summer Series against England and was one of the best players of the series. When de Klerk moved to Sale, he had to adapt his game to playing a large part of the English season during the winter months where conditions don’t lend themselves to free-flowing, attacking rugby. Therefore, de Klerk had to depend more on game management and control the game with his kicking. During the knockout stages of the World Cup, de Klerk’s on-point box-kicking played a key role in gaining field position for the Springboks and ultimately winning the World Cup. There is no doubt that de Klerk’s time in the Gallagher Premiership has taken him from a player who was out of favour with his national team to the best scrum-half in the world, leading South Africa to their third World Cup.
Cheslin Kolbe, like de Klerk, played a starring role for South Africa, scoring a try in the final and was shortlisted for World Rugby Player of the Year last year. Kolbe made the move to Europe in 2017, leaving the Stormers for Toulouse in the Top 14. Having already made an impact for the South African Sevens Team at the 2016 Rio Olympics (winning a bronze medal) he has gone on to an elite level amongst the best wingers in the world at the moment, both at a club level in the Top 14 and European Champions Cup as well as on an international stage. His quick feet and electric speed have dazzled fans in French rugby over the last couple of years and he has undoubtedly become a much better player from playing in the Top 14 and especially the European Champions Cup, arguably at a very similar level to international rugby.
The current list of South Africans playing in Europe is extensive; in the Gallagher Premiership Sale Sharks have 8 on their books including de Klerk and fellow World Cup winner Lood de Jager, Gloucester have the likes of Franco Mostert and Franco Marais in their squad and other members of the World Cup-winning squad such as Vincent Koch, Cobus Reinach and Francois Louw also play in England. A number of high profile members of the squad have recently secured moves to the Top 14 after the World Cup including Handré Pollard and Eben Etzebeth.
Many South African fans are seeing this drain of their top talent to Europe as hugely detrimental to South African rugby. Putting aside the playing aspect for a moment, there are simple economic reasons why so many players move to Europe and also Japan. The weakness of the rand compared to the pound for example is a major factor, as players can earn significantly more over here than in south Africa, and considering a rugby player’s career could be cut short at any point, that is completely understandable. Back to the rugby side of things, South African fans shouldn’t see their stars moving abroad as a negative but actually a huge benefit to their game. Firstly, these players get exposure of other leagues, play with the star players of other nations on a weekly basis and learn new skill-sets. In addition to that, when these players move on, it forces the provincial sides in South Africa to play new, young players in place of the experienced internationals moving abroad. What has actually happened is the so-called ‘talent drain’ has led to more talent being developed and a deeper pool of players being created, the envy of most other nations.
Although one can sympathise with South African fans as we wouldn’t want to see a number of English players moving abroad, however it improved their chances of winning the World Cup and took a number of their players onto another level. Rassie Erasmus’ decision to select those playing abroad rather than discounting them was potentially the difference between them winning the World Cup and not doing so.
Comentarios