Mametsa pays tribute to ‘a rugby colossus’
Former Bulls and Blue Bulls winger John Mametsa paid tribute to the late former Springbok captain Joost van der Westhuizen, describing him as a “colossus of the game”.
Mametsa‚ the first black African star at Loftus Versfeld during his successful career from 2002 to 2010‚ said Van der Westhuizen welcomed him at the Bulls without prejudice.
“When I arrived at Loftus in 2002 as a youngster‚ he was the captain and he welcomed me very well and made sure that I was properly integrated‚” Mametsa said.
“Working with him daily‚ what immediately struck [me] was his high work rate and professionalism. He would sometimes be the first one to arrive and last to leave training‚ not because he was trying too hard to impress as a leader but it was simply the way he was.”
Mametsa remembered one incident soon after he arrived at Loftus, when then coach Heyneke Meyer and his technical team arrived late for training and Van der Westhuizen gave them a piece of his mind.
“Starting time for training was 3pm and the coach and his technical team arrived late. He was not impressed. That showed me that he was not scared to speak his mind against anyone when things were not being properly done‚” he said.
“He called them to order about time-keeping but his rant was not in any way disrespectful and there was never bad blood between them and him after that,” Mametsa said.
“He was a good leader on and off the field and I referred to him as the commander-in-chief because he commanded his troops very well.
“What I noticed more as I got to know him better was that his combination with coach Meyer was good because they got the best out of each other.
“That rubbed off on us‚ which led to some of the success we had as a team.”
Mametsa said it would not be far-fetched to suggest that Van der Westhuizen was the best scrumhalf yet the game had seen. This was because he stood head and shoulders above his contemporaries in an era where there were No 9s such as George Gregan of Australia and Justin Marshal of New Zealand‚ who also left an indelible mark on the game.
“He changed the No 9 role because of his fearless nature and the opposition knew they were up against it when they were going to play against the Springboks and the Bulls and Blue Bulls‚” he said.
“There was also an aura about him and he gained respect from teammates and opposition alike because of his talents and how he carried himself as a consummate professional.
“I had lots of respect for him because of the way he dedicated his life to the game and the way he helped me to get my career off the ground at Loftus.”
Off the field‚ Mametsa said, Van der Westhuizen was humble. He remembered an incident when the scrumhalf invited Mametsa to join him for an appearance on an Afrikaans television show.
“I was still fairly new to the team and not many people knew about me at that time, but he insisted that I must join him.
“I think he wanted to introduce me to that Afrikaans audience and even though my Afrikaans was not that good‚ I enjoyed myself‚” Mametsa reminisced.