Merit at end of transformation rainbow
Allaying the fears of the doomsayers is as big a challenge for the South African Rugby Union as it is for them to appease those with politically driven agendas.
However, they are forging ahead with their much-talked about Strategic Transformation Plan - because at the end of the 'rainbow' will be the pot of gold called merit selection.
Jurie Roux, CEO of SARU, said it is his organisation's "responsibility" - like every other company and organisation in this country - to correct the wrongs of the past.
Despite vehement criticism from both sides of the transformation divide, SARU have produced some impressive numbers in recent years.
In April 2014 the Government Published their Eminent Persons Group report, which had audited the transformation efforts of the five major sports - rugby, cricket, athletics, netball and football. Rugby came out on top, with the only pass mark awarded and a score of 71 percent.
"When people say we are not transforming, it irritates us," Roux said in an interview with rugby365, at the end of a lengthy and comprehensive media briefing - where the organisation's STP was mapped out in fine detail.
"We are on a long-term process, we are busy and we are getting results."
Despite the suggestion that the fast-tracking of non-white players - both African blacks and players of the mixed-race groupings - will weaken the national teams, Roux believes those agendas are driven by people with ingrained stereotyping.
Roux is adamant black players are as good and some of them are better than the white players.
"I have no fear that it will weaken our teams," he said, adding that while there is a definite focus and drive towards African blacks, they have never been given any instruction from government that they should have 50 percent African blacks in their national teams.
"What has been the request for some time is that we place special emphasis on getting African blacks through, throughout our rugby, not just the national teams," the SARU boss told rugby365.
Roux said any player who suggest a black person is weaker than a white person will fundamentally never transform.
"In his mind he will say a black person is weaker than a white person and in his mind he will think that way not just about rugby, but about everything.
"There is a certain part of our past where people did not get equal opportunities - we are providing those opportunities.
"Yes, we are fast-tracking those opportunities, because we have a history that we have to wipe out.
"Through that a merit will come, they will select themselves - all we need to do is give them the opportunities.
"We want to do that across the board."
He made it clear the government is not "forcing" them select a specific number of non-white or black African players - even though their own goals could see Springbok teams include seven non-white players in 23-man matchday squads in the run-up to the World Cup later this year.
The plan is to have two black Africans among the seven non-whites.
However, this is their own target, not government-driven quotas.
"Never in my term at SARU has the minister of sport come and told me to do this," Roux said, adding: "He has an EPG [Eminent Persons Group] report with a very specific drive.
"However, long before his EPG report came out, we already had our transformation Indaba. Long before that [the EPG report] was formalised, we already had this [STP]."
"I am happy for them to do so,"he said.
"Nobody is going to tell us how to run rugby in this country.
"If they want to take us to World Rugby they must have a very strong case. However, we don't want to fight them - we are happy to chat to them and allay their fears."
The SARU boss bemoaned the fact that his organisation is, unfairly, still being measured by 'transformation' of the Springbok team, when his organisation is the best transformed sports federation in the country.
"I have been publicly stating this for a very, very long time - fortunately, or unfortunately, we only get measured by what the Springbok team does on the pitch.
"We have a system and as it stands, we are the highest transformed federation in terms of the government's criteria. We have a plan and we will work towards that plan after that they can judge us."
He felt it is unfair to put pressure on the Bok coach, Heyneke Meyer, to select a fully transformed team for international rugby, when there are not enough non-white players being brought through the systems.
"We have to bring players through the Vodacom Cup competition, through the Currie Cup competition and through Super Rugby to enable [Bok coach] Heyneke [Meyer] to select the players - that is the challenge.
"We are already doing better at Currie Cup and hopefully some of those players are reflecting in Super Rugby at the moment."
"It is unfair to put that pressure on the Springbok coach without offering him any assistance - his teams can only reflect what is going on at the elite end of the domestic game."
Some media reports mistakenly suggested there is a 50 percent quota for black players in the Springbok team.
However, Roux said this was a government request that was construed completely incorrectly and pulled out of proportion.
By Jan de Koning
@King365ed
@rugby365com
* EPG Report: A Pilot Evaluation
The completion and presentation of the pilot evaluation of transformation status of the five selected sports codes (rugby, cricket, athletics, netball and football) is an important milestone and a stepping stone for sports transformation. This preliminary multi-dimensional assessment goes beyond the traditional focus on racial representativity in our national teams to include other critical variables such as gender, access to infrastructure and participation opportunities, governance practice, employment equity and leadership diversity, preferential procurement as well as the demographic profiles of coaches and referees in these codes.