Tell it like it really is, not what you want us fans to hear

THE most encouraging South African sports moment this week wasn’t produced by Dean Elgar or Akani Simbine, notwithstanding their excellence.

For my money, it came in small-town Potchefstroom where Wits upset Nwu-pukke, the defending Varsity Cup rugby champions.

A delirious Constant Beckerling, Wits’ captain and the man of the match, delivered the most rousing post-match television interview I’ve seen in years. It was high on passion and joy and was a stark reminder that clichés and stock-standard responses don’t need to be the norm.

He even flipped effortlessly between English and Afrikaans.

Beckerling’s missive was like a beacon in a sea of insipidness. Media officers and higher-ups have sucked the life out of players and coaches, who are encouraged to toe the line and deliver monotone responses.

Sportsmen have largely become disengaged in the modern age and have little idea about what the fans want. I’ve known sportsmen to prattle on for 10 minutes and say nothing.

The jargon flies about and they sound vaguely interesting, but when you distil what they’ve just said, it amounts to very little.

Press conferences are the bread and butter of reporters, but I’d wager a large sum that without them we wouldn’t notice much difference. Coaches give little away, as you’d expect, and players are too shackled to talk freely. Mind-numbing caution abounds.

There are exceptions. An Eddie Jones media conference is a must-see event shot through with humour, sarcasm and acute analysis. You invariably come away having learned something, or had your ear bent.

Jean de Villiers was always good value. You’d never get any dramatics from him, but he had a sharp line in humour and perfectly understood his job – to sell his game to the public with the media acting as the megaphone.

Peter de Villiers with a microphone shoved beneath his ample moustache was always fascinating, probably because no-one could predict what he might say next. He could be cutting and funny in equal measure. He was never dull.

If halftime interviews with rugby players is mostly an exercise in frustration, interviews with boxers can be illuminating and exciting.

One of the best ever occurred a few years ago when legendary commentator Larry Merchant interviewed Floyd Mayweather jnr in the ring.

Mayweather: “You know what I’m gonna do? Cause you don’t never give me a fair shake, you know that? So I’m gonna let you go and talk to Victor Ortiz, alright? I’m through. Put somebody else up here and give me an interview.”

Merchant: “What are you talking about? What are you talking about?”

Mayweather: “You never give me a fair shake! HBO needs to fire you! You don’t know shit about boxing! You ain’t shit! You not shit!”

Merchant: “I wish I was 50 years younger and I’d kick your ass!”

It might have been off-colour, but it was pure gold for many viewers who loved the sight of someone finally giving Mayweather some lip.

To be fair, most athletes don’t speak in clichés because they’re dumb. Often, they are bombarded with inane questions, sometimes over and over again. Many would prefer not to talk to reporters, but do so because they must. If they develop a reputation for being boring, they’ll be left alone.

Beckerling was different, no doubt because he’d never been interviewed live on television before and doesn’t have a media person telling him the do’s and don’ts.

He took the gap, probably unwittingly, and has enjoyed his unlikely moment in the spotlight. He was even interviewed on national radio, all because he was interesting and bucked the trend. We got to see some of his personality which was a delight. Little wonder he’s captain.

Granted, many of our local heroes are often talking in their second or third languages which limits their ability to be colourful or provocative. This is understandable.

We’re probably too far gone down the road of professional sport to hark to the old days when sportsmen said it as it was, but it’s not too much to hope for more Beckerlings to pop up.

No-one wants to hear the boredom merchants. Chalk one up for the few mavericks and personalities who are still out there – if you just know where to look.