Bok success nudges SA sporting prodigy Riley Norton to pick rugby

1 Dec 2024

His love for the oval ball has seen the talented Riley Norton say goodbye to the small leather one.

Riley Norton is one of the most talented young sportsmen in the country. This year he has represented South Africa in age-group rugby, running out for the under-18 team for the second time in two years, as well as playing for the Junior Proteas in the under-19 Cricket World Cup.

The talented youngster put off deciding which sport to pursue in the long term for as long as possible, but since he is in matric this year, playing both rugby and cricket after high school has become unsustainable.

Norton, with the world at his feet, has opted for rugby, taking up a professional contract with Western Province Rugby. He follows in the footsteps of his father, Chris Norton, a hooker who was capped a few times by WP in the early 2000s.

The decision was based on his undying love for the oval-ball sport, although leaving behind the small leather one was not easy for the lanky athlete.

“I experienced cricket with the World Cup at home, which was an incredibly special experience for me,” Norton told Daily Maverick. “Representing your country on a big stage was really fun and something I really enjoyed.

“When I experienced the SA under-18 rugby again, played against Ireland, played against England… [It was] just purely the love of the game – what I enjoyed more. I decided it was rugby.”

Norton was a star performer for the Proteas under-19 at this year’s junior World Cup in Potchefstroom, collecting 11 wickets in five matches with his bustling right-arm fast-medium bowling, the second-most wickets for South Africa after Kwena Maphaka.

He also showed his ability with the bat, and his best score of the tournament came in a Super Six match against Sri Lanka, in which the strong left-handed batter struck an unbeaten 41 off 69 deliveries.

His all-round talent, especially his lower-order striking, would be valuable for any professional cricket outfit.

Read more: SA schools rugby and cricket representative Riley Norton is the ultimate all-rounder

“I owe a lot to cricket,” Norton said. “Cricket has done a lot for me in terms of my life. I’ve spent many hours on the field, [which has shaped and helped] me in my rugby career. But at the end of the day, I love [rugby] a little bit more.”

The recent success of the senior Springboks, being consecutive World Cup champions, also affected Norton’s decision.

“Of course, the Springboks are doing [so well] at the moment,” he said. “I’m sure, subconsciously, you watch them and you’d love to be in a position one day to experience the things they are experiencing.”

A young talent

Riley tried his hand and excelled at several sports in his youth: water polo, tennis, hockey and swimming were squished between his rugby and cricket playing days.

He reached provincial colours in tennis and swimming too, but jokingly admits that his shoe size of 16 might have been an unfair advantage in the swimming pool.

“That’s something that probably helped me as a sportsman – getting exposed to all these different skills with every different sport,” Norton explained.

“Each one offers something different. That was also something that helped me. It was also something I loved to do.

“All I wanted to do at that stage of my life was play sport. I couldn’t wait to get out of the classroom to play sports. It was never a burden to do so many sports – it was just something I really enjoyed and something that I loved.”

Taking part in sport after school didn’t take away from the 18-year-old’s achievements in the classroom, however. The 2024 Paul Roos Gimnasium head boy has just finished his final high school exams and seven distinctions won’t be a surprise when matric results are announced in January.

Norton has been an A-candidate student throughout high school and will be chasing a bachelor of commerce degree in investment management at Stellenbosch University next year while chasing his rugby dream.

“My brother is studying BCom analytics and I spoke to him about investment management. He spoke to a couple of his mates who did it and I decided that’s quite a nice [degree] to do.”

Kicking on

Norton is one of the few SA Schools rugby and cricket representatives to spend most of his time on the rugby field among the boots of the ruck and scrum, playing in the forward pack as a lock or blindside flank, in the mould of his role model and recent World Rugby Player of the Year, Pieter-Steph du Toit.

“Whenever I watch him, I want to play like him,” Norton said. “I try to watch what he does in certain situations.

“He’s just an unbelievable rugby player. I am definitely inspired by him whenever I watch him.”

Ruan de Swardt, Conrad Jantjes and Herschelle Gibbs – the more famous SA Schools double athletes – all played in the backline.

Despite no junior Cricket World Cup being scheduled for next year, Norton is still eligible to represent the side when they tour in 2025.

But in making his decision to pursue rugby, Norton has explained to Cricket South Africa that he won’t be available to take up an offer for the junior side.

“I’ve spoken to people from Cricket South Africa and explained to them my thinking around it, and also thanked them for everything they’ve done for me, picking me in a World Cup,” Norton said.

“But they won’t come knocking because they know I’ve made my decision. They understand that I’m going to play rugby next year.

“I wouldn’t say they tried to convince me. They explained to me that they’re sorry to lose me, but they were extremely understanding and kind about it.

“I never felt a sense of sourness. They were kind and considerate. They looked out for me as a person and backed my decision.”

Norton is most likely to be in action again on the rugby field for Maties during the Varsity Cup next year before playing for WP’s junior teams later in the year.

And, given the supreme talent of this young man, it surely won’t be long before he runs out in Western Province or the Stormers’ senior colours. DM

This story first appeared in our weekly Daily Maverick 168 newspaper, which is available countrywide for R35.

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A young talent

Kicking on