Ray of hope for rugby-starved BCM
People of the Border region have always had a huge passion for rugby — never more so than when the Springboks came to East London for their World Cup Trophy Tour earlier in November — yet local fans remain starved of high-profile rugby events.
The last time Buffalo City Metro hosted an international fixture was in June 2010, when the Boks took on Italy at the Buffalo City Stadium.
Since then, East London has fallen off the rugby radar in terms of staging big matches, as confirmed by Border Rugby administrative consultant Tim Dlulane.
In a province that is considered the SA home of black rugby, it is a point of concern.
Dlulane said the private sector in Buffalo City had no interest in growing the sport in the region.
“Sport is expensive. We have companies based in East London, but they have no interest in rugby. Businesses must come on board because at the moment we do not have funds,” he said.
Dlulane said there was a meeting with the Buffalo City Metro (BCM) on Wednesday over the condition of the stadium.
“What is also disappointing is that we have been waiting for four months on the BCM for the tariffs for training and matches.
“I told them that we were looking to plan for 2020 but the situation has not been before council. We are looking for the cost to train and rent the stadium. Things must be done in a speedy way. We cannot wait for four months to finalise how much it will cost us to rent the stadium.”
However, there appears to be some hope for local rugby fans.
The Port Elizabeth-based Isuzu Southern Kings are looking at bringing fixtures in the European-run Guinness PRO14 to the city in the 2019-2020 season.
Kings spokesperson Chumani Bambani said talks had been held about spreading some of the Kings fixtures to venues outside Nelson Mandela Bay.
“The Isuzu Southern Kings, the board and owners have always stressed that this team is one that represents the province of the Eastern Cape in its entirety, and as such, it is part of the franchise’s vision to take the team to the people of the province,” he said.
“Buffalo City Municipality is certainly one of the areas with a strong rugby following and support base for the franchise. The makeup of the team is also represented by members of the playing squad, coaching personnel, staff and owners who have their roots in the Border area.”
He said an announcement would be made in due course.
“We are excited about the prospect of bringing a game to Buffalo City this season. This would bode well for the province to bring a premier international competition such as the Guinness PRO14 to the region, with top international players, some of whom represented their various nations at the recent Rugby World Cup in Japan.”
According to Bambani, the move could have economic spin-offs for BCM.
“Such matches will not only bring international media exposure for the region, but will also be an opportunity for tourism with a big contingent of supporters from these various nations frequently accompanying their teams on their tours.”
South African Rugby Union (Saru) executive council member Monde Tabata, who has been appointed to oversee rugby in the Border region, said this was not the first time plans to have the Kings play in BCM had been discussed.
“Bringing the Kings to BCM would be in their interest anyway. East London would provide better stadium support than PE has been able to. We have been talking to the Kings and suggesting to them that even when they play Super Rugby, there should be matches in BCM.”
He said there was a “breakdown” in discussions between the management team and BCM in 2018.
“Major work needs to be done on the stadium. I would be reluctant to call for matches to come to East London when the stadium is not in a condition to be shown to the world.”
E-mails and WhatsApps sent to BCM spokesperson Samkelo Ngwenya were not responded to at the time of writing.
Sport is expensive. We have companies based in East London, but they have no interest in rugby. Businesses must come on board because at the moment we do not have funds