Francois Pienaar, the 1995 World Cup winning captain, could have been forgiven for growing tired of rugby.
However, since launching the FNB Varsity Cup presented by Steinhoff International in 2008, Pienaar has changed a sport which once relied solely on schools to develop South African talent.
Francois Pienaar, the 1995 World Cup winning captain, could have been forgiven for growing tired of rugby.
However, since launching the FNB Varsity Cup presented by Steinhoff International in 2008, Pienaar has changed a sport which once relied solely on schools to develop South African talent.
Universities nationwide have benefitted, and the impending addition of three Varsity Shield (second tier) teams means that Rhodes could soon follow.
In the eight annual tournaments prior to this year’s competition, the Varsity Cup has produced 24 international players, 16 of whom have been Springboks.
Last year, the University of Cape Town further demonstrated the quality produced by the Varsity Cup when they won the inaugural World University Rugby Cup.
This year’s Varsity Cup sees the introduction of a rule that grants teams an additional four points for tries scored from inside their own halves, and two for those scored from between the halfway line and the opposition’s 22m line. The purpose of this is to encourage complete rugby and to develop and exhibit all skills involved in the sport.
The awarding of bonus points to tries that have originated further out than the opponent’s 22m line is meant to encourage running rugby and promote the development of all skills at university level.
Pienaar, who is now the CEO of Advent Sport Entertainment & Media (Asem), who own the media rights to university sports across the country, also aims to ensure that talented players perform academically.
Speaking to Grocott's Mail, Pienaar said: “When we started the competition, it was open to everybody to play. Now it’s a student-based competition. We want the players to leave with a degree and having had the opportunity to play rugby for their university on television.”
The rules of the competition dictate that in order to be eligible to play, students need to have achieved 60 credits in the previous academic year.
Apart from encouraging academic excellence from varsity rugby players, Pienaar also introduced the Pink Shorts campaign. The initiative has seen the man of the match in each Varsity Cup game wear pink shorts in the following match to raise awareness about the abuse of women.
All teams in the Varsity Cup and the Varsity Shield have embraced the campaign and raised funds for organisations aiming to combat gender-based violence.
Despite the impact the Varsity Cup has made, Pienaar admitted that he faced resistance from the South African rugby authorities when starting the tournament.
“It was against the odds. The South African Rugby Union [SARU] didn’t want it. When I started, it was difficult to get sponsors… I don’t think people thought it could work. They thought that the level [of varsity rugby]was not great, but I always saw the amount of talent in this country,” he said.
Pienaar claimed that apart from SARU, he also initially faced opposition from within universities. He said: “It was difficult for the vice chancellors to see that this could be of the standing that it’s going to be. They’ve embraced it. It’s part of their curriculum. They also understand the power of sport in affecting social change.”
Critics within SARU also appear to be warming to Pienaar’s ideas. Rassie Erasmus, another former Springbok and now SARU’s General Manager of Rugby, said: “Since its inception in 2008, the Varsity Cup has had a massive impact on the South African rugby landscape… We’ve seen wonderful innovations in the game that will probably, in a couple of years, be standard for rugby worldwide.”
Next year, one current Varsity Shield side will become the ninth in the Varsity Cup, while the second tier competition will be expanded to seven teams.
An anonymous source claimed that Varsity Sport had identified Rhodes, along with Walter Sisulu University and Cape Peninsula University of Technology, as one of the teams expected to be invited into the Varsity Shield.
Should this happen, Rhodes will have the chance to strut their skills in front of the SuperSport cameras. The university could be on the brink of reaping the benefits of the system established by Francois Pienaar that has seen South African varsity rugby move to the forefront of the global game.
The Varisty Cup began on Monday (8 February), while the Varsity Shield started on 1 February.
sport@grocotts.co.za
