Give our rugby players a huge pat on the back

Something was definitely lacking this week and I couldn’t precisely put my finger on it. And I’m certainly not one to be dragged into the Eskom or political mess or the lack of municipal maintenance warfare or lack of proper planning issues.

Then it struck me – it has more to do with the obvious lack of hype and the general electric vibe surrounding the Currie Cup semifinals in Pretoria and Cape Town today, than anything else.

The lack of atmosphere obviously has to do with the on-going absence of fans at the stadiums and the general depression and anxiety caused by the Covid pandemic.

National Director of Rugby Rassie Erasmus earlier this week alluded to the fact that the Currie Cup semifinalists should be saluted for how they had stood tall amidst the challenges of the virus.

Erasmus said members of the public and rugby fans were not even reemotely aware of the duress that teams are under due to the impact of the Covid protocols and restrictions, as well as regular testing procedures.

He also mentioned how the waiting periods for test results limited training time significantly.

Often teams were not allowed to train scrums or mauls or general play due to testing on Tuesdays, which meant they couldn’t engage in any kind of contact on Mondays and even later in the week.

No team has gone unscathed and at least two of the semifinal coaches, Bulls mentor Jake White and Sharks coach Sean Everitt, picked up the Covid virus themselves, while Erasmus himself had to battle Covid along with his family members.

While the integrity of the competition has also come under fire, someone like Springbok prop Steven Kitshoff has twice had to be withdrawn due to Covid protocols, along with his World Cup and provincial team-mate Frans Malherbe.

Both the Sharks matches against Province in the Super Rugby Unlocked stage and the Currie Cup had to be called off due to Covid protocols in the Sharks front row.

At that time accusations were thrown around that the guilty team should be punished, like when the Cheetahs had to travel in vain to Ellis Park and had to make a U-turn at the 11th hour.

It also had to be noted that out of 650 professional players in the country, most are still playing on a 50% salary cut since the initial lockdown last year.

So…who wants to be a professional player?