Judge blows whistle on referee spat

By Shaun Gillham

THE Nelson Mandela Bay Equality Court has had to blow full time  on a bitter spat between two Port Elizabeth rugby referees  by red-carding a former provincial and international referee for apparently  attempting to sideline his opposition.
Last week the court warned Frans Muller, who has served as an official at the Rugby World Cup, about allegedly harassing fellow referee Trevor Ryan by spreading malicious slander both  “verbally and in written formats” to various individuals, schools, institutions and clubs in Nelson Mandela Bay.
“You have also influenced some institutions outside of your jurisdiction not to appoint the complainant to officiate in sports events,” the presiding judge said.
Muller, who represents the Eastern Province Rugby Referees’ Society (EPRRS) and refereed three test matches and officiated at the 2003 Rugby World Cup, was also warned to refrain from such activities – the non-compliance of which would lead to the issue being forwarded to a magistrate of a formal enquiry.   
Ryan, a lower league referee  and contract lecturer at the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan University, has been embroiled in the long-running dispute with both Muller and other members of the EPRRS since 2008 and has brought the spat into the public domain through letters published in the media, including the Weekend Post.
At the core of the acrimony are allegations of dishonesty, nepotism and a form of favouritism which Ryan leveled at EPRRS during 2008.
His refereeing abilities were also subsequently called into question in various media by both rugby pundits and parents. 
When contacted this week, Muller told Weekend Post he wanted nothing to do with Ryan and preferred not to comment on the issue, especially since he did not want to address the problem in the public domain.
However, Muller, who pointed out that Ryan was not a member of EPRRS, made it clear that the breach of peace judgment was not the end of the issue as it was being dealt with by lawyers representing the Eastern Province Rugby Union.
But Ryan  insisted that he had been victimised.
In an earlier  letter to the Weekend Post, Ryan said: “Just to let everybody know that Frans Muller, chairman of the EP Rugby Union Referees’ Society, has been served with a breach of peace court order from the magistrate of the equality court, ordering him to withdraw all his malicious, slanderous and injurious statements that he made about me to each and every rugby-playing school and club in the Eastern Cape, where he instructed/intimidated them to not appoint me to officiate in lower league events which are not even part of his jurisdiction, and to refrain from such actions in future.”
Ryan went on to point out that Muller had not signed acceptance of the court interdict but that it was still legally binding.

This is a version of an article that first appeared in the print edition of Weekend Post on Saturday July 28 2012. 

Ex-Bok coach Div’s sex tape bombshell

By Yolandé Stander and John Harvey
CONTROVERSIAL former Springbok coach Peter de Villiers has accused Southern Kings rugby boss Cheeky Watson and local ANC MP Cedric Frolick of being behind shock allegations that he had been filmed having sex in a parking lot in 2008 shortly after being appointed.

The accusations are made in De Villiers’s new book Politically Incorrect, released on Friday May 25. In the book, De Villiers claims he had been told the two were behind the sex tape smear which almost derailed his Bok coaching career before it had properly begun.

“The first time I heard about the so-called sex tape was the weekend of the Tri-Nations test against the All Blacks in Cape Town. Chris Hewitt, the South African Rugby Union (Saru) media manager who was later killed in a light aircraft crash, informed me about the existence of the tape. Apparently Cheeky Watson and Cedric Frolick were going to reveal a sex tape they had obtained of me in a compromising position with a woman in a car park during a trip to the Eastern Cape.

“By then Chris had informed me that Cedric, who as an ANC MP was involved with the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Sport and Recreation, had told him he would rather have a white coach who would listen to him than a black coach who did his own thing.”

The sex tape allegations centre on an incident in April 2008 when the Bok coach was allegedly caught on tape having sex in a car with an unknown woman. Later that year Springbok communications manager Andy Colquhoun was quoted as saying Saru had found “no evidence of a plot and no evidence such a tape exists”.
Watson and Frolick both rubbished De Villiers’s claim on Friday. Watson told Weekend Post: “My only comment is: ‘Shame, I feel sorry for him.’ It’s completely unfounded.”
An equally incensed Frolick said: “As I said initially when the story [about the sex tape] broke in 2008, I do not know anything about it. I don’t get involved in people’s personal business.”
He was surprised this was even mentioned in the book, because De Villiers never raised the issue with him after the incident. “If he had a problem he could have spoken to me about it, but he never did.”
De Villiers’s book has already courted controversy in Eastern Cape rugby circles as it contains assertions about Watson’s son Luke and the fact that the Southern Kings should not be part of the Super Rugby competition next year.
Frolick said De Villiers’s disclosures were a “slap in the face” to the Eastern Cape rugby community.
De Villiers’s criticism of the Southern Kings being included in the tough Super Rugby competition next year also came as a shock to Frolick.
In the book, De Villiers says the Eastern Cape needs rugby to be developed, as 60% of all South Africa’s black players come from the region, but the Kings are not the answer. “If you want to introduce rugby, make every Super 15 team play a game there. If you want to develop talent, let it run its natural course, not by buying players from elsewhere. If they gave black players the chance, they would be the best they could be  …
“We don’t have enough players to justify it. Instead of creating a vehicle to develop and keep the best black rugby players in the country, we’re making a team for the seventh, eighth and ninth best white players who don’t have anything left to give.”
He says the Kings simply would not be competitive in Super Rugby.
Also tackled in the book is the issue of Luke Watson, the current EP Kings captain, and his controversial stint with the Springbok team. In a section of who would captain the team he details his decision not to make Luke skipper.
“Cheeky didn’t expect me to be so strong. Like most South African fathers, he couldn’t take a step back from his child’s sport. Luke is an outstanding player and captain, but he never lived up to my expectations.”

This is a shortened version of an article that first appeared in the print edition of Weekend Post on Saturday, May 26, 2012.

Van Vuuren makes the grade for top French rugby club

Michael van Vuuren

By George Byron

A DREAM has come true for former Grey High schoolboy and current Free State rugby hooker Michael van Vuuren  who has signed a lucrative “big money” two-year contract  to play for the world-famous Stade Francais club.

The big-spending French outfit, who are known as the Manchester United of French rugby and regularly play in front of 80 000 fans at France’s national stadium Stade de France, have had their sights on Van Vuuren for some time. Van Vuuren, 20, who played for the EP Craven week team and the  Grey 1st XV in 2008 and 2009, made a name for himself while playing hooker for the Springbok  under-20 team at the IRB Junior World Championship.

The Port Elizabeth-born forward’s name was put forward to Stade Francais by the South African-born former French prop Pieter de Villiers who worked with Van Vuuren at Investec Academy last year.

“Pieter’s decision to put my name forward to Stade Francais played a big role in me receiving the offer from the club. My goal is to treat this as a  learning curve. I am still young and desperately keen to learn,” he said.

Asked why he had decided to move on, Van Vuuren said he felt the time had arrived for a new challenge. “I’m still young so now is probably the best time for me to go away for a few years and develop my game in key areas like scrum work and tight phases of play.” Van Vuuren says he has not turned his back on South Africa and still dreams of playing for the Boks.

This is a shortened version of an article that first appeared in the print edition of Weekend Post on Saturday April 28, 2012.

Johnson in Kings’ sights for coach

MARTIN JOHNSON

By George Byron

FORMER England World Cup-winning captain and rugby legend Martin Johnson’s name is being thrown around as a possible head coach of the Southern Kings for next year’s Super Rugby tournament.
Eastern Province rugby are busy hunting for a “world-class” head coach to spearhead the Kings’ much anticipated debut in Super Rugby. The new coach is expected to be named before the start of the Currie Cup season at the end of June.
Johnson, who captained England to their World Cup triumph in 2003, recently resigned as the England team manager and his name has been mentioned as a possible candidate in EP rugby circles. Insiders say the legendary Johnson possesses the type of credentials the Kings are looking for in their new coach.
The quest to identify a coach is being led by EP’s current head coach Alan Solomons. He is regarded as one of the shrewdest brains in South African rugby.
EP Rugby chief executive Anele Pamba told Weekend Post in an exclusive interview that once the new coach had been appointed, Solomons would move to an all-powerful position of director of rugby.
Pampa said “apart from “head-hunting” a top coach Solomons is also busy looking for fresh blood to beef up the Kings’ squad for their Super Rugby campaign.
“We must remember Solomons held a top position at the International Rugby Board’s development wing so he knows many coaches and has a great deal of contacts in the international rugby world. His net will be spread very wide.
“In the end, it will be between president Cheeky Watson, Solly [Solomons] and myself to identify the man to lead the Kings in Super Rugby.”
Asked whether the candidates had been narrowed down, Pamba said negotiations were ongoing.
“Solly is doing the talking at this stage and we do not want to interfere in the process,” he said. “Once the coach has been named Solomons will move away from the limelight in Super Rugby and take charge of all our coaching structures.
“We don’t need to grow only in Super Rugby, but we have to ensure our under-19, u-21 and Craven Week teams all come up to scratch.”
Solomons disclosed in an interview earlier this year that recruitment of South African players plying their trade abroad would be a big part of the Kings’ strategy in the coming year.
“Fans can expect an almost totally revamped team for this year’s Currie Cup and then Super Rugby. About 70% of the squad could be new players,” Pamba said.
Asked what the biggest challenge facing the Kings was ahead of their Super Rugby debut Pamba replied: “Survival.”

This is a shortened version of an article that first appeared in the print edition of Weekend Post on Saturday March 17, 2012.

Know the game, love the game

This year’s rallying cry is My Team, My Passion – see if you are your team’s biggest fan and stand a chance of winning R100 000 for best photo or video at http://www.absacurriecup.co.za

THE 2011 Absa Currie Cup tournament is under way after a stupendous kick-off in mid-July. This season promises to be a rip-roaring affair that showcases provincial teams to the max.

How much do you know about the Absa Currie Cup? Check out these quick facts to position yourself as a rugby guru.

* The Absa Currie Cup is one of the oldest provincial rugby tournaments in the world and will celebrate its 122nd year in 2011. The first tournament of this kind was for the South African Board Trophy, which Western Province won in 1889.

* Western Province holds the record for winning the tournament 32 times (including four shared). Second place is held by the Vodacom Blue Bulls with 23 victories (including four shared).

* The record for most points scored by one team in a single season is held by the Sharks team of 1996, when they amassed 792 points that year, which included 112 tries.

* Bjorn Basson scored 21 tries in 2010 for Griquas, the most ever by one player in a season, breaking the record of 19 jointly held by Carel Du Plessis (WP, 1989) and Colin Lloyd (Leopards, 2006).

The record for the most points in a single match by a player is held by Jannie de Beer, who scored 46 points for the Free State Cheetahs versus the Griffons in 1997.

* Most number of Absa Currie Cup finals played: 11 – Burger Geldenhuys and Naas Botha. Louis Moolman played in 9. All three played for the Blue Bulls (known as Northern Transvaal in their playing days).

* Western Province and Springbok rugby player Conrad Jantjes has represented his country in all three major SA sports disciplines – rugby, cricket and soccer.

* Absa is sponsoring the event for the 26th time in 2011.

Tickets to all the Absa Currie Cup action at the stadiums start at an affordable R30 – don’t miss out!

Once proud home of PE rugby being stripped by looters

OVERGROWN: Bay United general manager Lungsi Mooi sits among the weeds at the EPRU Stadium. Picture: Mike Holmes

By George Byron

THE Eastern Province Rugby Union Stadium, once the proud home of top class rugby in Port Elizabeth, is being systematically stripped by looters while historic memorabilia in the stadium’s offices and once plush hospitality suites have been vandalised and trampled on.

Now staff still left working in the stadium say they fear for their safety.

When Weekend Post visited the dilapidated stadium, efforts to enter the once grand Lawton Fourie Room proved difficult because of a cascade of water falling from the ceiling.

The guardhouse building at the main gate was unmanned and access to the stadium and the lifts in the main pavilion was unrestricted.

 Many of the abandoned suites were littered with broken glass, smashed windows and hanging electrical fittings which had been ripped out of the wall.

One room, which appeared once to have been used by the EPRU, had been ransacked and the drawers of a filing cabinet containing disciplinary case hearings rifled through and files strewn on the floor. The sliding door leading out from the suite had also been shattered.

 Photographs of proud moments in the history of EP Rugby lie discarded on the floor amid shattered glass panes. One suite, with a nameplate on the door: “Alan Solomons EP head coach”, has been abandoned and ransacked.

Though rugby is no longer played at the stadium, the run-down venue is now the logistical and training headquarters of Bay United which has administrative offices in the main grandstand. This week United general manager Lungsi Mooi spoke of her fear of going to work because of brazen looters entering the premises and stripping anything valuable out of the once luxurious wood-panelled suites.

Mooi, who has her office on the third floor of the main pavilion, is concerned for her safety because of the aggressive looting and lack of security at the stadium, which is municipal property. “I do not like spending time here any more. I have phoned the municipality to tell them about the looting on numerous occasions, but nothing is done.”

Sitting among the towering weeds on one of the stadium’s stands, Mooi appealed to the municipality to step up security and stop the looters from stripping the stadium’s remaining assets. “This place has become dilapidated and it is sad to see. Something drastic needs to be done.

 “There is talk that the stadium will eventually be demolished and new buildings erected. But I have heard nothing officially,” Mooi said.

Though Bay United play their matches at Gelvandale, the stadium once known as the Boet Erasmus is their logistical headquarters and they train on the main field.

The United players do not use the changerooms as they are in a poor state of repair.

 “We were just put here temporarily, so we cannot take charge of things like security and looting. Someone at local government or the municipality needs to take charge,” Mooi said.

 She said she would not like the stadium to be demolished as it could still serve a purpose as a sporting facility.

 “There is a need for facilities like this and I still see a future for the stadium. We could play our lesser games here while the big matches could be played at the new Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium,” Mooi said.

 Municipal spokesperson Kupido Baron said the looting was not acceptable and that the situation would be examined.

 “Even though there are plans to demolish the stadium we will have to look at an interim measure to stop the looting. Bay United have been placed at the stadium on a temporary basis. More permanent arrangements will have to be made for them,” Baron said.

In its heyday the Boet Erasmus was one of South Africa’s top four rugby stadiums and regularly attracted crowds of more than 50000 for tests against the All Blacks and British Lions.

 One of the most famous games at the stadium was in 1974 when the Boks lost to the Lions in what became known as the “Battle of the Boet”.

(This is a condensed version of an article originally published in the print edition of Weekend Post on Saturday, May 11, 2011.)

How Bay really won the Sevens bid

By George Byron

ONLY tense manoeuvring behind the scenes at the highest level stopped heavyweights Cape Town from derailing Port Elizabeth’s successful bid to host the star-studded international IRB World Sevens rugby tournament later this year.

Last-minute lobbying of key players who favoured international tourism hotspot Cape Town caused the decision to be delayed on several occasions before last week’s announcement.

This has been revealed by EP Rugby Board member and parliamentary house chairperson of committees Cedric Frolick who played a key role in ensuring Port Elizabeth’s bid enjoyed exclusive government backing.

EP’s bid was also given extra impetus by the support of SA Rugby Union president Oregan Hoskin who threw his full weight behind Nelson Mandela Bay’s effort. Frolick is well connected at the top levels of South African sport and was previously deputy chairperson of the parliamentary sports portfolio committee.

“While Port Elizabeth’s bid had the full backing of EP Rugby, the municipality and government, the Cape Town bid was fragmented with its municipality and WP Rugby not always seeing eye to eye,” Frolick said. “They also did not enjoy government backing.” The sponsors also had to be told that Port Elizabeth was not this “little town down the coast” and that it had performed admirably when staging Fifa World Cup matches.

“There was lots of work done to ensure our bid was successful. Though they only entered the race late, once Cape Town put their name in the hat they were always going to be a major force.”

It is believed one of the biggest battles EP had to fight was to win over the confidence of Emirates Airlines – one of the major sponsors.

“Obviously Cape Town is a world brand and the airline has a big footprint in the city with its own terminal at Cape Town International Airport,” said Frolick.  “However, we spoke to Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) and they have agreed to accommodate the airline in every way possible in PE. They can bring their aircraft in here and have facilities inside the airport.

“The success of this bid shows EP is now firmly on the path to secure Super Rugby status in 2013. The first step was the awarding of the Tri Nations Test to the city, when the Springboks will face the All Blacks on August 20.

“We now have stability in EP rugby and everything is starting to fall into place.”

Frolick said he had entered into negotiations with Hoskin to convince the SA Rugby boss the city would be the ideal host. “I told Hoskin if George lost out he should not take the tournament away from the region. Every year thousands of PE fans travelled to George to watch the event and PE was the next logical option.”

While Port Elizabeth’s bid was unified, the same could not be said for Cape Town.

“Rugby does not have a footprint at the new Greenpoint Stadium which is administered by the municipality which made the original bid to host the Sevens.

“The municipality offered WP Rugby the chance to play at the new stadium at exorbitant fees which was turned down by rugby, who have continued to play at their traditional home at Newlands. It was only right at the end that WP Rugby threw their weight behind the Cape Town bid.

“I think that when considering the bids the rugby (bosses) decided they did not want to get involved in the local politics of WP Rugby.”

Frolick said the new stability brought to EP rugby by president Cheeky Watson and chief executive Anele Pamba had renewed SA Rugby’s faith in the region.

Frolick also heaped praise on the efforts of Nelson Mandela Bay Mayor Zanoxolo Wayile, who said his city was ready to welcome the world.

“I also believe another big plus was the massive 48000 crowd which attended EP’s Currie Cup playoff match against the Pumas last season.”

Pamba said the event could bring in revenue worth about R80-million to the city.

“This event will be televised to between 16 and 20 countries and we can expect a massive influx of tourists,” said Pamba, adding there were plans to organise an additional week-long Sevens tournament leading up to the main event.

And it will also be a special occasion for Springbok Sevens coach Paul Treu, who will relish the chance of a return to the city where he played for EP at the end of his career. Treu completed his masters studies in education psychology at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University.

The tournament will be held in December over two days which have not yet been announced.

(The print version of this article was originally published in Weekend Post on Saturday, April 16, 2011.)

Boozy team-building for school’s first rugby team

By Shaun Gillham

GREY High School’s first team rugby coach has been suspended and members of the highly-rated team disciplined following drinking incidents during a recent team-building weekend at Kenton-on-Sea.

The incidents which occurred several weeks ago and the resulting disciplinary action came shortly before the start of Grey’s popular annual rugby festival which started this weekend.

Grey is playing host to hundreds of young rugby players from many of South Africa’s leading rugby-playing schools until Wednesday, April 6.

Premier schools such as Pietermaritzburg, Hilton and Kearsney Colleges and Michaelhouse and Pretoria Boys High are competing in the event, which traditionally marks the start of the school’s rugby season.

Weekend Post received numerous SMSes from concerned parents and children at the school regarding the drinking incidents, which took place over two days in Kenton-on-Sea at the beginning of last month.

Speaking candidly about the incidents, which he labelled “an unfortunate error of judgment”, Grey High School rector Neil Crawford said the issue had been addressed through an investigative and disciplinary process at the school and that sanctions, which had met the approval of the school’s governing body and the parents of the boys involved, were being applied.

He said the first team’s 18-member rugby squad had gone to the resort town on a team-building weekend where they had stayed at the holiday home of one of the player’s parents. The team’s coach, Dean Carelse, accompanied the boys.

“In an unfortunate error of judgment, the boys consumed alcohol at the private home on the Friday night with the knowledge of the coach and again on the Saturday, when the boys also consumed alcohol at a licensed bar in the area.

“Other than the boys’ presence there and that they consumed alcohol, there were no incidents.

“A patron at the bar reported (their drinking) to the school about a week later and we investigated the incident,” Crawford said.

He added that a disciplinary hearing was then held on March 18 in conjunction with representatives of the school’s governing body.

As a result of the process, Carelse was sanctioned with a 12-month warning and suspended as coach of the first rugby team for a season.

“The coach is a very good member of our staff and it is unfortunate that this error of judgment occurred. He will retain his academic duties and he was offered a position to coach another team at the school.

“He is very well liked and respected by the learners. The boys involved have been sanctioned with the harshest of our detentions, which will be held on Saturday nights, as well as during the week.”

Crawford said the boys involved were “very remorseful” about  their actions, adding the school had taken into account the boys had been under the authority of a teacher at the time and that their parents were satisfied with the punishments.

The rector said irrespective of whether any of the boys were over 18, or whether they had been drinking on private property, the school rules prohibited pupils from drinking alcohol while enrolled at the school.

“The boys and the school have now put this incident behind us and the boys have bounced back ahead of the rugby festival. We wish the team everything of the best,” Crawford said.

(The print edition of this article was published in Weekend Post on Saturday, April 2, 2011.)

 

Still no word on Bay’s bid to host IRB World Sevens

By George Byron

EASTERN Province rugby officials are still awaiting news from the International Rugby Board (IRB) about whether their bid  to host the IRB World  Sevens  rugby tournament has been successful.

“The matter is with the IRB and we are awaiting word from them. We are confident our bid will be successful,” said EP’s chief executive officer Anele Pamba. It is believed a decision has already been made but it needs to be ratified by the IRB.

There have been hopes for several weeks now that an announcement on the successful candidate would be made.

Though EP officials, including president Cheeky Watson, have remained tight-lipped on the matter they have indicated they are confident of landing the money-spinning event.

The government has given its backing to Port Elizabeth’s bid to land the rights to host the South African leg of next year’s star-studded international IRB World Sevens rugby tournament – a move which could be a body blow to George which has hosted the  Sevens  for the past eight years.

Pamba said if the event came to Port Elizabeth it would bring in revenue worth about R80-million to the city. “This event will be televised to between 16 and 20 countries and we can expect a massive influx of tourists.”

He said there were also plans to organise an additional week-long sevens tournament leading up to the main event.

“We want to involve as many people as possible in the tournament We want teams from the Border region. It will be a massive occasion for everyone to enjoy,” Pamba said.

Deputy chairman of the parliamentary sports portfolio committee and Eastern Province Rugby Board member Cedrick Frolick said he fully supported the bid.

“After a massive crowd of 48000 turned up to watch EP play the Pumas last season, the leadership of SA rugby and the International Rugby Board must be licking their lips at the prospect of bringing the Sevens  to Port Elizabeth,” he said.

And Springbok Sevens  coach Paul Treu will relish a chance to return to the city where he played for EP at the end of his career. Treu completed his masters studies in education psychology at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University.