Wits shows the world — or Pukke

POST-MATCH interviews can be platitude-laden cliché fests but Wits captain Constant Beckerling’s enthusiastic post-match musings is a refreshing departure. The bearded skipper spoke with verve and passion after his team beat Pukke away in a Varsity Cup match on Monday. “We went out there to prove something,” he said sweating and breathing heavily. “We wanted to show the world what we’re about at Wits.” Later adding: “. . . this is not a once-off, this is not an aberration.” Despite being short of breath, Beckerling looked ready to scrum a bear.

ONE local franchise boss has distinct views on where Sanzaar should start culling should Super Rugby be trimmed next season. “I see no benefit for Sanzar, note that I didn’t say Sanzaar, in having the Jaguares and the Sunwolves in the Super Rugby competition. There certainly is no economic benefit and if World Rugby feels the gospel needs to be spread in those areas, maybe they should pay for it.”

THE same blazer wearer who preferred to be anonymous seemed to have it in for the Jaguares. “Week in and week out they are playing with what is effectively their test team in Super Rugby. World rugby has rules in place that stipulates teams can only assemble a week before a test. They will grow and get better as a result. They will beat us more often,” he warned.

THE New York Times recently examined the roots of Swing Low, Sweet Chariot, the African-American hymn adopted and popularised by England fans. The academics were mostly disapproving of the way it is used on the other side of the Atlantic. “Such cross-cultural appropriations of US slave songs betray a total lack of understanding of the historical context in which those songs were created by the American slave,” one academic was quoted as saying. As The Daily Telegraph put it: “Lets hope that The NY Times does not discover where Scotland fans suggest the chariot should be deposited.”