Aphelele Fassi’s dream Bok debut
Aphelele Fassi was the one to watch when the Springboks thrashed Georgia
HE’S been dubbed the “wonder wing” and it’s easy to see why. Aphelele Fassi’s blistering speed, good passes and rocksolid defence have been praised by rugby fans and experts worldwide. It came as no surprise when the talented young player got called up to represent his country for the Springboks’ first game of the season against Georgia. And Aphelele (23) didn’t disappoint. The newcomer scored his first Test try in the fifth minute of the game – contributing to the Boks’ 40-9 thrashing of the Georgians.
Playing at left wing instead of his usual fullback position, he also set up another try with a well-executed chip kick.
“I’m very fortunate to score a try on debut and my first touch,” Aphelele tells YOU.
“I think I got confidence from assistant coaches Mzwandile Stick and Felix Jones and everyone in the setup.”
Modest as Aphelele may be, his dream debut sent fans into a frenzy. Videos of neighbours throwing a party for his parents in the small town of Qonce in the Eastern Cape went viral on social media.
“Back home, everyone supports each other’s achievement and what they did for me was special. When I sent the video, I was quite emotional because people were taking their time to actually support me and my family for my achievements,” he says.
“It makes me super-proud to see there are people who have my back and people who support me.”
It’s not just the people back home who are singing his praises. “I was just so pleased for him that with his first touch of the ball he managed a really good finish to score in the left-hand corner,” Sharks coach Sean Everitt said after the game.
“All his [Sharks] teammates were cheering in the team room as we were watching in the hotel. It’s just so good for him to get a dream debut like he did.”
Everitt, who has worked closely with Aphelele during his breakthrough years at the Sharks, says the youngster has a bright future with the Boks.
“Hopefully, he has put his hand up for a place in the Test series later on.”
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PHELELE comes from a big sports-loving family. He’s one of six children born to Kenneth and Yandiswa Fassi. His parents named him Aphelele Onke Okuhle, which roughly translated means “all is complete and beautiful”.
Growing up with a house full of kids wasn’t always easy, but Aphelele wouldn’t
‘I HOPE I’M IN THE SETUP FOR MANY YEARS BECAUSE EVERYONE HAS A VOICE’
have it any other way. “I think the nice thing about it is you actually learn a lot from your siblings,” he says.
“They’ve got different characters, but you learn a lot and there’s a lot that’s being shared, which is nice.”
He’s pretty close to Kenneth (69) and Yandiswa (59), who are his biggest fans. “I’ve got a strong, healthy relationship with my parents. They’ve taught me life lessons that will stick with me for a long time.”
Aphelele’s passion for rugby grew when he started throwing around the oval ball with his brothers, Sonwabile (30) and Ntsikelelo (28).
“We started this thing called touch rugby in the streets – that’s where I learnt the game itself,” he recalls.
As a teen he honed his skills at Dale College, a top Eastern Cape rugby school that’s produced players such as Keegan Daniel, Bjorn Basson and Aphiwe Dyantyi.
Aphelele played for the school’s first team for three years, before captaining them in 2017. In his matric year, the fullback made it to the provincial team and before he knew it his professional career was in full swing.
“In 2018, I played my first SuperSport Rugby Challenge game and after that season, I got drafted into the Currie Cup 2018 squad. Fortunately, we [the Sharks] won that game, and I got my first Currie Cup trophy in my first year,” he says proudly.
In 2020, Aphelele’s star once again shone during the Super Rugby games. The rising star was in top form and had been earmarked to play for the
Springboks against Georgia in the Rugby Championship last July.
But his dreams of playing for the national team came to a screeching halt when the pandemic struck, putting on pause all international and local matches at the end of March.
For the fullback, it was a crushing blow. “It felt like I had to start all over again to regain the form I had.”
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HEN the Super Rugby Unlocked season was about to start again, Aphelele wanted nothing more than to run onto the field with his teammates. But injuring his shoulder in a freak training accident during a warm-up match at Loftus Versfeld put him out of the game for three months.
“I was devastated. Then some doubt started to creep into my mind that certain things are probably not meant for me,” he tells us.
The Sharks star had surgery on his shoulder yet worried about making a full recovery. Had it not been for his family, friends and teammates, he’s not sure he would have found the confidence to bounce back from his injury.
“The support I received from my family and the club itself was impeccable. I’m grateful they gave me the chance to come back and come back with confidence.”
Still, he was stressed about his Bok debut. Aphelele barely slept the night before his big game. The first thing he did that morning was call his parents, who helped to keep his nerves under control. “They told me to stay calm, enjoy the moment and be myself.”
Bok teammates Willie le Roux and Damian Willemse also offered valuable advice when they ran out onto the Loftus pitch together. “They said similar things, like ‘Enjoy the moment’, ‘There’s a reason why you’re here’ and ‘Don’t try to overempower yourself and do things you don’t feel familiar with’,” Aphelele recalls.
“I think those two guys played a role in making me feel very calm.”
Playing for the Springboks is different from what he thought it would be. At first, he thought the environment would be tense and coaches would be strict but he was pleasantly surprised once he joined the team.
“It’s very calm, everyone knows what they’re doing and they’re allowing people to showcase who they are,” he says.
“I hope I’m in the setup for many years to come because there’s a lot of detail being shared, everyone has a voice and everyone can be themselves.”
Aphelele is now being compared to retired Bok star Ashwin Willemse and Springbok speedster Makazole Mapimpi, but he isn’t letting it weigh on him. “I feel no pressure,” he says. “I’m here to learn and grow my game in different ways.”