Good to see rugby finally playing ball

CONGRATULATIONS to Lucky Lekgwathi and his Orlando Pirates team.

Let me also congratulate the president of South African Rugby Union, Oregan Hoskins, on his election to the post of vice-chairman of the International Rugby Board.

We are proud of this achievement and wish him all the best in his new role.

Again, it is fitting to talk about Saru's rugby academies launched in Nelson Mandela Bay last week. The ministry is proud of initiatives like these in trying to deal with the issue of rugby development.

We also are thankful for the role of the National Lottery, for its investment in the sport of rugby. We really appreciate it.

During the launch of the academies last week, attended by some of the former rugby greats in the province, we were happy to hear that the Eastern Province Rugby Academy was renamed the Solly Tyibilika Rugby Academy.

It is in recognition of his tireless and immense contribution to rugby and sport in Eastern Cape.

We do this rejuvenated by the rich history of his forefathers and many other martyrs who sacrificed their lives in the struggle for a united, nonracial, non-sexist, democratic and inclusive sport system, and even contributed meaningfully in rugby, especially in provinces of the Cape.

We also need to make mention of the successful National Sport and Recreation Indaba, which, among others, strove to remedy shortfalls in SA rugby and revitalise, reconstruct and advance rugby in particular, and sport in general.

This initiative is in the spirit of the advanced course of the indaba. It is about increasing access and building and opening up new opportunities for top-flight rugby among young black players in the province and the country in general.

After 20 years of unity talks in rugby, we find it necessary to take corrective steps in the sport. Indeed, it is time that we actually roll up our sleeves and change the code of rugby for the better.

It is really not fulfilling that after 20 years of 'attempted transformation and change' in rugby, we are still witnessing inequality in sport, facilities, and lack of representation in our national teams, including rugby administration, management, coaching and officiating.

This pilot project, which sees Eastern Province, Border, South Western Districts and Boland Rugby Unions working together, is one of the best models that will see talent identification and nurturing for high performance being given a practicality.

Like we said, congratulations to Saru and its leadership for this important initiative.

Initiatives like the development and roll-out of rugby academies are in their nature a call to action, a call for the roll-out of the establishment of focused, vibrant and robust centres of development and excellence close to our communities.

This strategy will go a long way to opening access to sport and recreation, and thereby increase participation at all levels of involvement, especially in rugby.

This is a springboard for grassroots development in rugby and for a talent identification mechanism across the board, through a targeted approach towards young people from disadvantaged and neglected areas.

Again, let's work together in achieving the goals and outcomes of the Sport and Recreation Indaba.