Boks facing another kind of isolation

One has to turn back the clock many years to find a time when the Springboks haven’t been in action during single calendar year. While New Zealand have been tipped to host the Rugby Championship, the Boks’ participation will remain doubtful as long as government continue with their bizarre lockdown regulations.

With every passing week it seems likeliest that a local “State of Origin” series event will take place in a Boks’ potentially inactive year.

New Bok coach Jacques Nienaber has seen a July month pass by where he would have made his debut as national coach in two Tests against Scotland and one against Georgia but that has gone up in smoke because of the global coronavirus pandemic.

Nienaber himself said recently he might have to make peace with the idea that his first Test might only be next year July against the British and Irish Lions.

In fact, the last time the Boks didn’t play a single Test in a year was 29 years ago, in 1991, when most of the current crop of players were either still in nappies or too young to remember.

That was also the year just prior to the Boks making their return to the international arena after years in sporting isolation due to the Apartheid policy of the previous regime. That was lifted with the release of the late Nelson Mandela from captivity.

The years that the Boks didn’t feature included 1983, 1985, 198788 and 1990-91.

That drought in the 80s was only briefly interrupted in 1982 with a visit from the Jaguares, which was a combined South American and Spanish team, England were here in 1984, the rebel New Zealand Cavaliers in 1986 and a World XV in 1989.

It deprived the world from seeing stars like Naas Botha, Carel du Plessis and Danie Gerber in their prime and even the British Lions tour of 1980 and New Zealand tour in 1981 were overshadowed by anti-Apartheid protests.

So for the first time in almost 30 years, the Boks might not play at all, but this time it is a new enemy at play – Covid-19.

The Sate of Origin series could be played from the end of November to early January if the Bok tour to Europe in November is also called off.

It is a proposed North v South contest. The North sides would be the Bulls, Lions and Cheetahs, and the South, the Stormers, the Sharks, and possibly the Kings.

But for now, the models for a local Super Rugby competition and a shortened Currie Cup are still on the “maybe” list for the end of August.