Border pair adds muscle to their neighbours
THE Southern Kings Super Rugby squad has a distinct Border flavour to it, with a number of former players who were born and raised on the Border having been confirmed in their ranks for the coming season.
The latest two confirmed signings were former Queen’s College flyhalf Lionel Cronje and former Selborne College hooker Tango Balekile.
The 20-year-old Balekile represented the Junior Springboks with distinction at the World Rugby U20 Championship in England earlier this year, after which he played for Eastern Province in SA Rugby’s U21 Provincial Champs.
He represented Border at schools level at the U16 and U18 rugby weeks before moving on to the EP Academy, where in his first year he helped the EP U19 team claim the U19 championship in 2015.
Balekile has continued to improve and got his first taste of senior rugby in the Currie Cup qualifiers earlier this year.
“We’ve been watching Tango with a keen interest this year and we know he’s ready to make the step up to the next level,” said Southern Kings head coach Deon Davids.
Cronje, 27, is already a seasoned campaigner, making his Super Rugby debut for the Stormers in 2010.
He has since been a bit of a traveller plying his trade for the Bulls, Lions, Brumbies and Sharks.
Cronje also began his rugby career playing for the Border junior teams and represented the Junior Boks, while in 2011 he was named the Vodacom Cup Player of the Year while at Western Province.
Other players who have been named in the Kings squad so far who have roots in the Border include Andisa Ntsila, Ntabeni Dukisa, Wandile Putuma and Yaw Penxe.