7 Life lessons learnt from rugby champions
South Africans have been ecstatic, over-the-moon-type elated ever since our team won the Rugby World Cup a week ago. The euphoria shows in the smiles plastered on South Africans’ faces, while effervescent hope feels tangible. Our chests are swollen with pride fuelled by the sense that we are a winning nation.
Rugby.com.au originally reported the much vaunted captain of the Springboks, Siya Kolisi’s thoughts on the victory, making South Africa four-time champions: “Honestly people who are not from South Africa don’t understand what this means for our country. It’s not just about the game on the field. Our country goes through such a lot. We are the hope they have. “
More than just rugby
Even as a local, I failed to grasp the magnitude and significance. But, Jonathan Liew of the Guardian masterfully described it.
“There are times when South Africa’s rugby team can feel – illusorily, but persuasively – like the only thing really holding together this divided country, with its 12 official languages and infinite planes of ethnicity and history and privilege, with its endemic instability and its useless politicians. In reality it is a kind of utopian cosplay, a rolling 80-minute fantasy of what South Africa might be like if it truly were content and united.
“But it is an origin story as powerful as any the sport has to offer, and so perhaps when you are this convinced of the sanctity of your mission, you will stop at nothing in its pursuit. Whether it’s a crucial tap-tackle or a little shimmy to try to fool the referee that you were accidentally offside. Whether it’s a clutch kick or claiming with an entirely straight face that bringing off your crippled hooker is actually a tactical substitution.”
As Siya expressed, winning the Rugby World Cup was about much more than just rugby. Something elusive transcended it completely: something that put a pep in the step, a sparkle in the eye, and sparked the hope of a nation.
Perhaps, it was the intersection of a definitive moment of time, history and destiny. The lyrics of Whitney Houston’s ethereal, anthem-like ballad, One moment in time, originally written for another epic event – the 1988 Summer Olympics held in Seoul, South Korea – could possibly provide insight into the heartbeat of this epic, epoch-defining moment.
Build-up and context
South Africa had been experiencing load-shedding for 15-plus years up until the competition and it had become progressively worse. As a result, many households throughout the country were without power for hours a day for quite some time.
The gloomy mood in the country had been exacerbated by regional flooding, natural disasters, etc. and some of us just about made it through a winter that felt longer and colder than most. Some good cheer was sorely needed.
Rugby has always drawn a crowd and engendered an arch-rival or two. By nature, South Africans are quite competitive and, traditionally, our sportsmen and women have been held to a high standard. Yet somehow, some of our politicians have been downright disappointing. Consequently, corruption is the order of the day and scandals abound.
Furthermore, the leader of one of the largest opposition parties in the country started to sing the old struggle song, “Kill the Boer”, again. New racial tension erupted and renewed anger from the past simmered.
Into this milieu, stepped a certain Siya Kolisi and Co in green and gold. Siya’s dogged determination and message that the Boks play for everyone in the country soon saw ordinary South Africans backing the team, no matter the colour of the supporter or the sportsman. By the time the day of the final arrived, the excitement and hope were at fever pitch.
Brand Springbok
In the build-up to the final, I heard the unifying sentiment expressed that when South Africans bleed, it is green and gold. Clearly the sport attracted ardent fans and had always been a valuable brand. However, Brand Finance valued them at fourth in the world in October while the World Cup was being played. They explain why as follows:
“The Springbok (brand value up 44% to USD117 million) brand has grown 44% since 2019, but the weakening rand has meant it has lost one place as Ireland leapfrogged the Boks to move from sixth to fourth.
“The Springboks did however maintain their fourth place in the rankings of strongest brands with a brand strength score of 81,4, up from below 80 in 2019. The Springboks’ improved brand value, in addition to brand strength, is off the back of its 2019 World Cup win and current form. Captained by Siya Kolisi, the national team brand is led by a highly valuable and inspiring role model that adds to the strength and value of the brand.”
I am by no means a rugby aficionado, yet I, entranced like many South Africans, felt compelled to keep an eye on the ball. Here is what I learnt and what could be useful to anyone who wants to be part of a winning team in whatever capacity.
1. World class even with narrow margins is good enough
Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary defines world-class as follows: “as good as the best in the world”. I think winning the Rugby World Cup after besting some of the finest in the world and coming home ranked number one in the official rankings, the Springboks can definitely be described as “world class”.
Yet, en route to this feat, the Springboks won all three knockout games against France, England and New Zealand respectively by a measly point. Ultimately though, it was enough to lift the trophy. I learnt that being world class does not mean that you have to be so much better than your closest rival. The margins can be thin, but as long as you consistently produce the goods, you are good enough.
It would seem that, sometimes, world class simply means consistently being a cut above the rest even if by the tiniest of margins.
2. Playing with heart ignites passion
From coverage throughout the Rugby World Cup, there was no doubt in my mind that the players in the national team were not only putting their bodies on the line, they were playing for the privilege of wearing the jersey and for fellow South Africans.
Daily Maverick’s report by Songezo Zibi, the national leader of Rise Mzansi, particularly expressed the sentiment of many of rugby’s newfound fans, perfectly encapsulating it when he said:
“Yet, national intolerance of needless failure is so important. I am not a big rugby fan, but I like watching the Springboks because they fight for every ball and inch. Even when they lose, I almost never doubt their willingness to proverbially die in battle. Although disappointed, my sense of loyalty remains strong because I am primarily proud of their fighting spirit, not just their victories.”
This also tapped into an important concept: “national intolerance of needless failure”. I sensed a yearning for something else among ordinary South Africans. For too long, we had been mired in mediocrity.
Yearning for something else
As a nation, we have had to endure load-shedding since 2007. Every year, politicians promise that it will end; nevertheless, after 15 years, saying we have trust issues is an understatement. Another Daily Maverick article from 2021 sums at the problems at South Africa’s state-owned enterprises (SOEs) perfectly.
“The Auditor-General, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and S&P Global Ratings have all identified the country’s parastatals as a problem in the broader context of SA Inc. The overall sentiment among all three is that SOEs have been turned into repositories where “misuse and leakage of public funds” are commonplace. That is polite-speak for rampant corruption.”
Battle-hardened South Africans desperate to make ends meet and so used to corruption needed something to elevate their hopes. It is not too difficult then to understand how seeing a national team winning against the odds ignited passions and dreams. Coming after so many disappointments and dashed hopes, the hope inspired by Springbok heroics on the field remains incalculable.
3. Grit and fortitude, the soul of a champion
Former Springbok captain and World Cup winner, Bobby Skinstad, remarked that the South African team found that extra gear exactly when it seemed like their backs were against the wall. He defined the soul of the Springbok during a particularly eloquent interview as follows:
“Sometimes with our backs to the wall, we have become a very different beast. And maybe therein lies the magic of what our soul is.”
Current fan favourite, Faf de Klerk concurred in his statement directly after the historic triumph in Paris. He cited the Springboks’ never-can-die attitude especially when their backs were against the wall as part of the reason why they were so successful.
Recently hailed as the man who does not miss, Handré Pollard expressed a similar sentiment when he observed that the squad quite simply never gave up.
Hallmark of a champion
And do we believe them! Twice in the knock-out games, we only led the games from minute 68 and 78 respectively. The Bok team nearly gave the nation a collective heart attack and most of us struggled somewhat with stress.
To say the team had its back to the wall in both those games is an understatement never-mind the weight of expectation on those shoulders. That was when they showed grit. Their ability to absorb the pressure, keep believing and then finding that little bit extra soon electrified our nation.
It is thus clear: the hallmark of a champion is that never-say-die attitude. Sometimes though, one needs to accept things that are out of one’s control but not until all has been given and the whistle blown.
4. Remaining rock solid under pressure
The pressure-cooker tension of the final on an international stage could be the undoing of a lesser soul. However, the scene had been set – the arch nemesis of the South African team was once again performing the haka on the other side. This time, penalties and refereeing decisions were factors in this mightily tense game.
In the stadium, sat another former world number one, the tennis ace Roger Federer. His mother is South African, but even though well acquainted with pressure himself, he found himself unable to look too sometimes. Neither could Cheslin Kolbe, who was stuck in the sin bin. Leading 12-11, the last minutes that South Africa had to hold onto that one-point advantage seemed to last for an eternity.
Roger and Cheslin, in those moments, were all of us. We could not bear to look either – too nail-biting. The men on the field had to face an onslaught from their toughest rugby rival in the world in order to earn the right to lift rugby’s most coveted trophy. Nothing less than a place in history was at stake. And they kept their composure and overcame their nerves.
It would appear that handling pressure can be learnt. Perhaps, putting oneself in high-pressure situations and overcoming is part of the repertoire of champions. Some actually seem to live for it.
5. Excellence produced by training
Clutch player, former junior Springbok and Rugby World Cup winner Handré Pollard had not made the initial squad due to injury. Lack of game time with the team ensured that he missed the cut. However, destiny knocked when a team mate was injured and he was called up for national duty.
It just so happened that his performance would become the stuff of legends: a 100 per cent record kicking off the tee. Indeed, it was poetry in motion and revealed what excellence produced through training looked like. To boot, the points from his boots in clutch moments proved to be pivotal. When asked about his kicking prowess in an interview, he said shared,
“In those moments, you trust the process, trust the hours you’ve put in and deliver.” … “You always try to do what you always do.”
Personally, the part of “doing what you always do” resonated with me. One has already had to be doing the thing for it to click. It cannot remain a pipe dream, you have to go for it and work towards it. Simone Biles was clearly onto something.
Handré’s heroics with the boot has immortalised him a bit in the minds of new fans. His mesmerising performance showcased the skill and ability required to consistently strike the ball under pressure.
The lesson: one has to keep the faith: keep believing and never stop training.
6. Overcoming adversity leads to success
South Africa is the most unequal society in the world according to a World Bank report released in 2022. Yes, the vestiges of apartheid still scar the country nearly 30 years after democratic elections took place in 1994. We are a resilient bunch, but the feeling one got during the World Cup was that it was high time that this rather beaten-down, rainbow nation tasted triumph again.
The lads like Siya, Bongi Mbonambi and Makazole Mapimpi who had overcome overwhelming odds to be in the team have to be heralded as well as their tenacity and belief to overcome various barriers to entry. Some battled personal limitations too. Cheslin Kolbe, for example, was told he was too small in stature to be a Springbok rugby player. He never gave up on his dream and my goodness, hasn’t he proven the doubters wrong.
Champions exhibit a mind-set that sets them apart despite experiencing setbacks from adversity and personal limitations. What is holding you back? Will you allow it to?
7. Merit, fairness and following the rules is vital
During a discussion with a friend about why the heroics on the rugby field so gripped our nation, we both agreed that the men on the field were excellent players in their own right.
Two issues were at play in this conversation – the contentious issue of rugby quotas of the past and the implementation of Black Economic Empowerment (BBE) policies of our country. Necessary, but not always effective is how many experience the latter.
Yet, our belief was that every man that put on a jersey was the right person for the job. Years of hard work meant that the very best, no matter the race, were able to don the jersey and represent our country with pride.
Acknowledgement
I think we owe our former Director of Rugby, Johan “Rassie” Erasmus, a ton of respect. The resident talisman and leader par excellence has sometimes proven polarising, certainly odd, and has needed to make difficult decisions. A few quotes as reported by The Citizen from his memoir titled Rassie: Stories of life and rugby with David O’Sullivan and published by Pan MacMillan is incredibly insightful.
On his choice of captain, he said, “I preferred loose forward because that’s a player who is usually on his feet and can see the game and is not stuck in a maul or doesn’t have his head buried in a scrum. I needed someone who had the players’ respect for the way he played. Siya Kolisi was the Stormers’ captain, playing some of the best rugby of his career, and he was a loose forward.
“He ticked all the boxes. So I chose him to be captain. Those were my reasons. I didn’t tell him until we were all sitting in the team meeting. I put the names of the squad up on the big screen, went through it, and said, ‘Siya, you’re captain.’
“I dealt with the issue of transformation, saying that while we were trying to fix the wrongs of the past, Siya’s appointment as captain had no bearing on transformation. I made it clear that all the players in the squad deserved to be there and I was not trying to fabricate things.”
Men of Rassie’s ilk in this respect are rare. He has earned the honour and adulation he has received to be honest. His decisions were sometimes met with derision and he faced pushback, but his courage of conviction undergirded by his values meant he never wavered. Time has proven him right and he has been richly rewarded for nurturing a team who has talent, heart and guts in spades.
From this, I learnt that doing the right thing is often hard, but it will prove itself right in the end.
Thank you
We thank those who so valiantly fought to lift the trophy for the fourth time. As supporters, we were delighted to witness history being made. With every game in build-up, it felt like something special was brewing, all the ingredients were coming together and percolating just for such moments of brotherhood and nationhood as observed over the last few weeks.
I am so grateful that the Springboks were able to rouse our nation to newfound hope, tap into its psyche and help us to taste glory again. It feels a little like a fairy tale that was written in the stars, but one thing I know, it was no cakewalk. Long may the legacy of the Springboks inspire hope and change in South Africa, our land.
Feel free to drop a comment and let me know if anything resonated.
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