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SA Rugby is in a good space, but there are dangers and challenges on the horizon

SA Rugby is in a good space, but there are dangers and challenges on the horizon
Nadine Roos of South Africa Women scores a try during the match against the Barbarians at DHL Stadium in Cape Town on 7 September 2024. (Photo: Grant Pitcher / Gallo Images)
Craig Ray
By Craig Ray
18 Sep 2024
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South African rugby, thanks largely to the Springboks, is enjoying a golden period. But it remains a precarious situation.

Over the course of 54 hours later this week, the Springbok women play a Test against Spain, the 2024/2025 Vodacom United Rugby Championship starts with six games (minus South African teams in round one), the African Rainbow Community Gold Cup starts, the All Blacks meet Australia for the Bledisloe Cup, The Lions host the Sharks XV in the 2024 Carling Currie Cup final and the world champion Springboks attempt to win the Rugby Championship against Argentina.

That is a long sentence and should never be allowed in respectable copy. It would draw a pointed email from the chief sub. But it serves to underline just how congested and unbalanced the rugby programme is, especially as it pertains to South Africa.

sa rugby dangers Cheslin Kolbe of the Springboks on attack during the Castle Lager Rugby Championship match against New Zealand at DHL Stadium in Cape Town on 7 September 2024. (Photo: Anton Geyser / Gallo Images)



sa rugby dangers Sizophila Solontsi of the Springbok Women during the match against the Barbarians at DHL Stadium in Cape Town on 7 September 2024. (Photo: Ashley Vlotman / Gallo Images)



All those matches or competitions include South African teams and when you see it laid out like that, it does raise the question of whether the calendar is sustainable.

Many fans can’t keep up with the smorgasbord of tournaments and characters, while Test players in particular, are toiling through non-stop 12-month seasons.

All but the Gold Cup are professional events. The Gold Cup is an amateur competition and is funded by the South African Rugby Union (Saru) and requires a huge logistical and operational effort from the mother body to pull off.

In Saru’s 2023 annual report, 38% of annual union revenue of R1.35-billion was expended on the investment in participating in the URC and European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR) competitions (R385-million)) and ultimately the Boks’ successful Rugby World Cup campaign (R133-million).

Other Springbok and national team activities cost R326-million, and securing player image rights and local insurance costing R124-million accounted for 33% while the R347-million distribution to member unions was 25% of income.

Rugby is the pride of the nation


The Springboks’ success and inclusive approach to being a team for all South Africans has made the national team, and by extension, rugby, the sport that gives the nation the most pride.

Many years ago, a rugby administrator told this writer that when the Springboks are doing well, all the other problems in the sport go away.

sa rugby dangers Pieter-Steph du Toit of the Springboks on attack during the Castle Lager Rugby Championship match between South Africa and New Zealand at DHL Stadium in Cape Town on 7 September 2024. (Photo: Anton Geyser / Gallo Images)



That holds true to an extent. Times have changed though, and the success of the Springboks will not be enough to ensure the professional game purrs along happily in the national team’s wake. That might have been the case as little as a decade ago. It isn’t any longer.

The URC was set for a massive opening weekend with the four SA teams involved in local derbies. That plan had to be shelved because Saru needed to squeeze the Currie Cup into the calendar.

By upsetting the URC fixture list, it caused some tension with Saru’s British and Irish partners at a time when there is a small, but growing lobby to oust South Africa from the URC.

That’s if some reports in the British press are to be believed, even though the URC issued a statement distancing itself from the story that suggested English clubs wanted in. At the expense of South African and Italian teams.

South Africa will become a full member of the URC in 2025 and has a binding contract to be part of the competition until at least 2031.

Currie Cup schedule


As for the Currie Cup – well, that’s an ongoing saga.

The 2024 Currie Cup has gone by almost unnoticed because there is simply too much overlapping rugby, never mind other sports, for it to retain the prestige it once held.

Last week, the Lions’ highly entertaining 43-34 Currie Cup semifinal win against the Cheetahs at Ellis Park was watched by a smattering of fans. The Bulls and the Sharks XV played out a thrilling 40-40 draw after extra time, with the Durban side advancing on tries scored. There were perhaps 12,000 people at Loftus.

sa rugby dangers Johan Goosen of the Bulls during the Carling Currie Cup, Premier Division, semifinal against the SharksXV at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on 14 September 2024. (Photo: Lee Warren / Gallo Images)



And before a ball was passed, this year’s edition of the Currie Cup nearly didn’t happen.

Earlier in the year Saru unilaterally announced the dates of the competition from 5 July through to 21 September.

That led to a dispute between MyPlayers, through its umbrella body the South African Rugby Players’ Association (Sarpa) and the South African Rugby Employers’ Organisation (Sareo) against Saru over player welfare and designated rest periods.

In June, an independent arbitrator ruled that professional South African rugby players, playing for a home province, were entitled to an eight-week rest period that “must occur at the same time”.

The only eight-week period open was July and August. That meant the 2024 Currie Cup could not go ahead.

It did eventually kick off as scheduled after MyPlayers, the body that represents professional rugby players’ interests, Sareo and Saru came to an agreement with a groundbreaking welfare pact about player rest periods.

It was a messy episode that underlined the challenges of the amount of rugby being played. The 2025 Currie Cup dates have not been set yet. It is likely to happen in a similar time slot though.

sa rugby dangers Nico Steyn of the Lions tackles Daniel Kasende of the Free State Cheetahs during the Carling Currie Cup, Premier Division semifinal match at Emirates Airline Park in Johannesburg on 14 September 2024. (Photo: Gordon Arons / Gallo Images)



To add to the complexity, the Cheetahs are facing a financial crisis and are on the brink of bankruptcy because they owe the SA Revenue Service millions. Saru doesn’t have the wherewithal to bail them out.

Other pressing needs


Saru is also funding the Bok women, still paying annually for South Africa’s four major clubs – the Bulls, Lions, Sharks and Stormers – to compete in the URC, running the Currie Cup and managing the Springboks.

Financially, rugby is in a precarious state with Saru barely breaking even as it covers the cost of supporting its 15 provincial unions as laid out above. Even though the Boks are reigning double world champions and the No 1 team in the world, the sport remains one unforeseen setback away from disaster.

The Bok women’s programme is gradually improving and ambitions to be in the world’s top eight in the short term are on track. High performance manager Lynne Cantwell has put the programme on a good trajectory, but it all requires funding from Saru.

The Bok women scored an impressive 59-17 win over a Barbarians team in Cape Town on 7 September and face Spain at the DHL Stadium on 19 September. South Africa then plays host to the international WXV 2 tournament later this month.

sa rugby dangers Nadine Roos of South Africa Women scores a try during the match against the Barbarians at DHL Stadium in Cape Town on 7 September 2024. (Photo: Grant Pitcher / Gallo Images)



Saru has rightly been active in drumming up support for the Bok women.

“We have an incredible opportunity to come together and support our Springbok Women’s team,” Saru president Mark Alexander said this week. 

“This match is more than just a game; it’s a chance for us to stand behind our women and show our commitment to rectifying the imbalances in our society.

“The team have trained tirelessly and demonstrated immense dedication to represent our nation on the international stage. By filling the stands and cheering them on, we not only boost their morale but also send a powerful message of unity and support for gender equality in sports.”

The Bok Women are preparing for World Rugby’s exciting six-team WXV 2 tournament, with matches at DHL Stadium and Athlone Stadium. South Africa are pitted against Japan, Australia and Italy on 27 September, 5 and 12 October respectively.

We should enjoy the success of the Boks and teams in the URC and Currie Cup and the Bok women. The good times are great. Hopefully they last. DM

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