SARU hold U18 Camp
It is an innovation, and not one that everybody will find a good idea.
SARU's stated aim that this will carry on from the camps for Under-16 and Under-17 players held in October last year and the objective is to prepare players for the 2019 World Rugby Under-20 Championship. This camp will start in Friday, 17 March 2017, and run for five days.
Part of the objection from schools is the use of school time and also the intrusion into the schools season. After all this weekend Affies play Helpmekaar, Garsies play Dr EG Jansen, Monnas play Eldoraigne at Ellis Park in a curtainraiser to the Super Rugby match and Welkom Gimnasium play Louis Botha.
Then late in the season the SA Schools teams play tournaments against overseas teams, which again clash with some big schools matches.
SA Rugby’s acting high performance manager Louis Koen will manage the camp, while the national Under-20 coaching and management teams, and scrum consultant Pieter de Villiers will also be hands-on at training. The Under-20 coaching tan management teams are Chean Roux, Mzwandile Stick, Dr Jerome Mampane, Karabo Morokane and Hayden Groepes.
The SA Schools Selectors will also attend the camp.
Manager Koen said: “This camp is the culmination of three years of hard work behind the scenes by SA Rugby’s EPD managers, Nico Serfontein and Herman Masimla,” said Koen.
“Their respective Talent Identification Units, which comprise managers, coaches and scouts from all 14 provincial unions, have identified, assessed, trained and monitored these players for the past three years.
“The camp is also serves as a major step forward in preparing this group for the World Rugby Under-20 Championship in 2019 because we do not have the luxury of U18 and U20 Six Nations competitions like our European counterparts.
“Some of the northern hemisphere teams play between 15 and 20 ‘Test’ matches as a group from the age of 16 to the time their sides assemble at the U20 showpiece, while the Junior Springboks have played only three as the SA Schools team.
“We have looked at different models in age group rugby and football, and one of the major contributing factors to success at International Under-20 level is more game and training time, as well as socialising together as a group from the age of 16.”
Koen emphasised that other players that excel for their schools teams could also play their way into the Under-18 High Performance squad and he encouraged them to continue working hard to achieve this.
The players will participate in seven training sessions over the four days, with the main focus areas being skills, attack, defence and kicking, while there will also be split sessions with the forwards and backs.
SA Rugby Under-18 Elite Player Development Camp Squad
Fullbacks
Hillegard Muller du Plessis (Paarl Gymnasium)
Quan Eymann (Brackenfell)
Qamani Kota (Welkom Gymnasium)
David Kriel (Grey College)
Wings
Thaakir Abrahams (Paarl Boys' High)
Angelo Davids (Stellenberg)
Sebastiaan Jobb (Duineveld)
Keith van Aswegen (Welkom Gymnasium)
Janco van Van Heyningen (Grey College)
Bonianga Mpeku (KES)
Centres
Diego Appollis (Garsfontein)
Yanga Hlalu (KES)
Waqar Solaan (Grey High)
Rikus Pretorius (Grey College)
Barend Prinsloo (Monument)
Marnus Potgieter (Affies)
Flyhalves
Lloyd April (Hermanus), who also plays centre
Shaun Baxter (HTS Drostdy)
David Coetzer (Selborne)
Christopher Schreuder (Grey College)
Evan Roos (Paarl Boys' High)
Scrumhalves
Tinus Combrinck (Monument)
Vusile Dlepu (SACS)
Jaden Hendrikse (Glenwood)
Eighthmen
Francke Horn (Paarl Boys' High)
Pieter Johannes Jacobs (Monument)
Flanks
Kwezi Dlamini (Stirling)
Andries Fouché (Rustenburg)
Travis Gordon (KES)
Albertus Horn (Paarl Boys' High)
Mark Snyman (Helpmekaar)
Lunga Ncube (Glenwood)
Marcelle Mombers (Menlopark)
Johannes Labuschagne (Affies)
Locks
Adrian Alberts (Paarl Boys' High)
Cristen van Niekerk (Monument)
Juan van der Mescht (Glenwood)
Sibusiso Madonsela (Piet Retief)
Jordan Mbuyamba (St Benedict’s)
Dawid Meiring (Outeniqua)
Props
Joshua du Preez (Paarl Boys' High)
Marthinus Strauss (Paarl Boys' High)
Keagan Glade (KES)
Nkosikhona Masuku (Parktown)
Magnus Muller (Oakdale)
Jan Meades (Witteberg)
Hookers
Wilhelm Barnard (Paarl Boys' High)
Jean-Jacques Kotze (Paul Roos)
Morné Brandon (Monument)