A great day but ultimately just a sports result. I for one am not getting carried away with the political insinuation that this will further unify our country, what bollocks, we won the world cup, we didn’t eradicate crime or build a million houses etc. It may help to resurrect the sport of rugby as a national game, but without a commitment from the public, the rugby community and the government it will become merely a memory of a few days where the South African nation shared a common goal.
What did the World Cup mean to me? Well, I am South African and will always be, I love sport, all sport, and I really love rugby, so this was one of the greatest sporting occasions of my life.
I have feelings of slight guilt that I so vehemently supported South Africa and spent such a vast quantity of money being there. I haven’t lived in SA for almost 5 years and have contributed very little to the economy and well-being of my homeland, but neither do I withdraw anything from SA, on the contrary I relentlessly promote my home country globally.
I have never complained about quotas in sport, certainly not in rugby, and I realise that whilst away from SA I personally cannot help with rugby development, so I accept any measure that those in government seek to redress the racial imbalance in the team.
I think that instead of moaning about picking teams on merit etc. the rugby fraternity should get out there and capitalise on this momentous win and sponsor development, sponsor players, sponsor teams and sponsor infrastructure. . If you really care about rugby and the future of the sport in SA then give some precious time to coaching and nurturing youngsters in traditionally non rugby environments. Otherwise, like me, you must simply accept that it will continue to be a marginal sport in our great country and government spending on the sport will continue to fall aginast its primary competitor - soccer. And therein lies the crisis for rugby, not that politicians are involved, which I agree is ludicrous, but that government spending on rugby will all but dry up, and rightly so.
Understandably now, rugby and politics are inseparable, but I hope that finally, what the support shown by the entire nation for this win might also do, is provide proof to the politicians, rugby fraternity and general public that this is just a sports team, loved by all because they represent one country and not just one sector of our nation. That is all. I hope to see the same support for the Soccer Team in 2010!
We are the World Champions and I was there to witness it. Thats a great feeling, almost as good as it felt to be there, to soak up the whole day with friends and family, then to celebrate like I had been given 24 hours to live!
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