Rugby surprise at House & Garden Show

RUGBY fans visiting the House & Garden Show next week will be delighted to hear that the South African Rugby Union (Saru) has a stand that will present the Springbok Opus, a 620-page, 35kg history of rugby in South Africa.

It is a magnificent tome that was four years in the making and is the product of an England-based company that only publishes the best of the best – its recent publications include histories of the queen of England, Michael Jackson and Manchester United, so the edition on the Boks is in distinguished company.

There are three editions of the Opus – the Captains’ Edition, which is limited to 100 copies, the Classic Edition and the Midi Edition.

The Captains’ Edition is the biggest of them all, and has the signatures of 40 national captains across the racial divide of the South African rugby landscape, ranging from Saru legends Salie Fredericks and Cassiem Jabaar to the recently retired Jean de Villiers, as well as current Springbok coach Allister Coetzee.

Never mind the All Blacks and the British and Irish lions, the Boks are the first side to be chosen by the company from the game of rugby.

The Opus tells the diverse story of rugby in South Africa, from its earliest days.

It will educate many rugby followers about the “secret history” of rugby in the Cape province and in the Eastern Cape, as well as depicting the better-known trials and tribulations of the Boks.

It is not well known, for instance, that the South African Coloured Rugby Board was founded in the 1890s – some time before some of our existing provincial sides were established.

It is 125 years since the first Springbok jersey was worn, and the history of rugby in this country is meticulously covered in the Opus right up to 2014.

The Captain’s Edition will cost R150 000, the Classic R30 000 and the Midi R3 500.

The East Coast Radio House & Garden Show will run from this coming Friday until the following Sunday, July 10.

Former Bok flyhalf Butch James will be at the Springbok Opus stand this Friday between 2pm and 3pm, and former Bok wing Stefan Terblanche and coach Ian McIntosh will be present on Tuesday, July 5, at the same times. – Sports Reporter