Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
The ‘Hoff’ loves doing what he does
‘We are obviously not going to the Olympics this year, which sucks ... we did everything possible’
Sports writer LIAM MOSES chats to South African hockey defender Rhett Halkett VETERAN South Africa men’s hockey team defender Rhett Halkett made his debut against Germany in 2009. Over six years and 131 international appearances later, Halkett is set to earn three more caps against the same side. How old are you? 29 Where were you born and where did you grow up? I was born in Benoni, Johannesburg. I grew up in Noordhoek, Cape Town and spent most of my childhood and high school here, and then I went to study in Pretoria. Which schools did you attend? I went to Fish Hoek Primary School and then I went to Wynberg Boys’ from Grade 6. How did you start playing hockey? I played a little bit in primary school, and then I went to Wynberg Boys’ and it pretty much took off from there. When I was young, both of my parents played hockey so I guess you could say it’s in my genes. But I think I really fell in love with it when I went to high school. What is it about hockey that you love so much? At Wynberg I was fortunate enough to play a lot of sports. I played cricket and tennis as well as hockey. I think the team aspect was a big part of why I chose it over another game, and also the dynamic nature of the sport. I think it’s one of the few sports in the world that has changed in terms of rules to try to make the game better and faster, to try and improve it and make it more watchable and easier to understand. In a weird way, it evolves every year and that’s what I love about it. Did you play any rugby during high school? I did. I went to rugby trials, but that didn’t last very long and I decided to stick with hockey. I played rugby at primary school. I think it’s standard, if you’re South African, that you play rugby, cricket and hockey. Where do you play your hockey right now? I’m currently in Cape Town, waiting for the European season to start. I’ve been based in Europe for almost six years. After university, I went to Australia in early 2010 and then at the end of 2010, I moved to Holland to play for a club called Den Bosch. I played at HC Den Bosch for three seasons and then I moved to another club in Amsterdam called Larensche Mixed Hockey Club for one season. Then I moved across to Germany to play for Mannheimer HC, where I’m still based. When, where and against which team did you make your international debut? I debuted for South Africa in 2009, against Germany, when I was 24. I was quite old when I debuted because I had to wait for the Olympic cycle to finish.
So after 2008, after the Beijing Games, a lot of guys retired and I got the opportunity. What I remember most about it is that we didn’t have a lot of the ball. I remember doing a lot of defending.
But I also just remember the feeling of pride at being able to play for my country, and my dad being there to watch. It’s a magical experience to debut for your country in a sport that you love. Germany were the Olympic champions in 2008 and then they won it again in 2012, so it’s pretty much the same. How do you earn 131 caps in less than seven years? South African hockey doesn’t have any funding so we can’t afford to go on as many tours as we get invited to, or host many teams in South Africa, so the number of caps you get in a year varies. Some years there will be major tournaments and you can get as many as 25 and other years, such as this year, maybe you’ll get six or 10. Who will captain the side in Austin Smith’s absence? Tim Drummond was the captain for the Africa Cup. So I think there’s a good group of senior players that can easily pick up the captaincy, depending on who is available and who isn’t. I think we are fortunate in that way. We have had four different captains within the last two or three years. Does the selection of a younger, less experience squad mean the team is building for the next Olympic Games? We are obviously not going to the Olympics this year, which sucks. But it’s not like we didn’t qualify, which is a positive. I wouldn’t say we’re building for the next Olympics as much as it is a good opportunity for those young players to get a taste of senior international hockey, because they have the Junior World Cup coming up later this year. Then, the next focus for us is the Commonwealth Games and also the senior World Cup happening next year. So it’s an opportunity for the younger players to be a part of the team and establish themselves, and possibly stay in the set-up and build towards 2017. Do you count yourself as one of the senior players and leaders in the team? I hope so. But the message has been clear, and it’s the same in our team ethos: you need to play your best for your country every time. If you don’t play well enough consistently, then you don’t make the team. The best players play whether you have a thousand caps or whether you have five. How many times have you have you captained the team? I can’t remember offhand, but I would say over 20 times and possibly even 30. What is the biggest highlight of your career? The biggest highlight is probably walking out at the Olympic Games opening ceremony. That will be forever etched in my mind. Also, playing Great Britain at the Olympics in London was also a massive event and something that I will never forget. I think my debut was a proud moment, but it was exactly as I thought it was going to be, so it wasn’t as much of a shock to my system.
Other highlights are playing European leagues and seeing how hockey could, and possibly should be, in this country in terms of spectators and the matches actually being an event. It’s just wonderful to have that opportunity to play against the best players in the world every weekend. I’m still not tired and I’ve been doing it for six years. What is the atmosphere like at a massive European club match? It’s electric. There is a huge crowd, both for the away team and the home team. Sadly, I’ve probably had bigger crowds for some of my European games than playing for South Africa. It’s just part of their culture in Europe. It’s part of how they grow up. Hockey is a recognised sport. It’s not as big as football of course, but there is an understanding and respect for the game.
That’s why people come and watch; because they love the game and they’re involved in the club or their kids are. It becomes a family past-time. You get big crowds and it’s intense, because clubs invest money in players and they want to achieve and win trophies. Have you ever won any titles in the Netherlands or Germany? No, I haven’t. At the moment, the club I play for is first in the top division and we are halfway through the season exactly. So there is a bit of pressure on us to produce the goods again in the second half of the season, but it’s an exciting challenge. Are European clubs always happy to release foreign players for national duty? I think it differs depending on the club, your relationship with the club, and how honest you are in the beginning when you’re negotiating your contract. For me, I am very lucky that I have always been fortunate enough to make myself available to play for South Africa, but I think that is also a credit to the clubs I have played for and the people I have dealt with. There has always been an open, trusting relationship, where they know they understand it is my duty to play for my country and at the same time to play for my club. We always try to find the best solution possible. What are your expectations for the series against Germany? I try to not have expectations, and not only in terms of hockey. There are obviously things we want to achieve. For us, as a team, we need to make sure that we are at the same level or better than we were when we played the three Test matches at the beginning of the year. We always agree that we want to get better every time we play, whether it’s a one percent improvement or a 10 percent improvement.
So it’s a lot to do with our performance and what we are trying to achieve as a team, but it’s also just a fantastic challenge to play against the best. We relish that opportunity to test our skills and our mettle against the best in the world.
I don’t think many people are aware of the circumstances of South Africa hockey. It’s theoretically heading in the right direction, but as long as I’ve been involved we’ve always had to think on our feet and problem solve.
Does playing in Germany give you any sort of advantage for the series? In a way it does, compared to a player who has never faced the German players, but in the same breath it’s a team game.
I may have a slight advantage playing against some of the individuals in the German side, but the team has played Germany enough times to know what brand of hockey they’re going to play. We’re smart enough to realise what we’re up against. Why do you think hockey in South Africa hasn’t reached the same heights as cricket, football and rugby despite the high participation numbers at school level? To simplify, it’s not a massive part of our sporting culture. On television you see rugby, cricket and football, and unless another sport does exceptionally well and they win gold, they won’t get recognition.
Apart from that, hockey isn’t constantly on television, or promoted or available for people to see. That already puts us one step behind everyone in terms of the popularity race in sport. South African school structures are so strong and so good that we produce – at age- group level – some of the best players in the world. Then after age-group level, unless you’re going to a top-level sporting university, to get exposure to good coaches and get education, there is a huge gap where players get lost.
Hockey players have to end up choosing between playing hockey at club level or a job, or a family, or a career, or moving overseas. There is a massive void there, where other countries have institutes of sport, where they hand-pick players and group and train them. The scary thing is that the numbers are there. It’s one of the most participated in sports in South Africa. Does South Africa need a professional league in order to become an international powerhouse? It would definitely be a step in the right direction, because currently there is nothing. There is no funding, there is no institute of sport, there is no centralised training. We get together a couple of days before we play a team that has been training for the last six months, but we still compete.
I don’t think many people are aware of the circumstances of South Africa hockey. It’s theoretically heading in the right direction, but as long as I’ve been involved we’ve always had to think on our feet and problem solve. It’s always been a case of we’ll prepare for a week before a tournament, and other teams have been preparing for a year. So some of the results we have achieved are quite extraordinary.
If Bafana Bafana had to train for a week before the African Cup of Nations and win, people would be losing their minds about it. If we had those things in place and a sponsor that would allow South African players to be professional athletes, which we are without the paycheque, it would change the whole face of hockey. At the last three Commonwealth Games we have finished fifth or fourth, so it’s not as if we’re far away. Do you have any pre-match rituals or superstitions? (Laughs) I have no superstitions at all. I’m quite meticulous in my preparation before a game, but nothing that stands out. Do you have a nickname? I think I got the nickname “Hoff ” during my first year at university at Tuks and that stuck for a long time. A few people still call me that. We were at training in Pretoria and it was scorching hot so we all had our shirts off. I was wearing red shorts and, one thing lead to another, and they made the association after Baywatch. If you could change one thing about the game of hockey, what would it be? Not much. I think it’s already one of the most dynamic games in terms of rule changes to make the game faster. I think we’re on the right page already. What about penalty corners? There has been a lot of talk about changing penalty corners, but I think it’s a skill to have a good penalty corner routine. It’s the same as a free kick in football. It’s a skill and an art form that people put hours of practice into. If you dedicate time to that and you have the set-piece waxed, then I don’t think you should be punished for that. I think they’re exciting and there is a lot of skill involved. What is the favourite goal of your career? I don’t score many goals, but I would have to say my first goal stands out the most. It was a penalty stroke at the Commonwealth Games, against Canada. The game was pretty tight and thankfully it went in. The scores were 3-2 and my goal made it 4-2. It was a big moment in the game. Who was your hockey idol growing up? I have a lot of respect for Craig Jackson, the former South African player, for how he played and managed the game. I really respected his ability not only as a hockey player, but also as a leader and how he responded to what was in front of him. What is the funniest thing you have seen on a hockey turf? Hockey is such a fast-paced sport that you see funny things and you only laugh at them at the end of the game because you can’t really take the time out to laugh. I think seeing guys go over the sideboard is always quite entertaining.
The classic one is also when someone’s shoe falls off and they end up playing for a few minutes in their socks. Can the Stormers win Super Rugby this year? You’re asking the wrong guy! I have an interest in rugby, especially on the international stage. I obviously support the Stormers, but whether they will win Super Rugby. I honestly don’t know. Will you be watching the Rio de Janeiro Olympics? I’ve thought about it. My initial response would be that I hope I’m somewhere on holiday, where I don’t have to see it.
It still hurts (that we won’t be competing), especially since we did everything possible to qualify and that politics stepped in and took the opportunity away from us. What is your favourite food? I went to boarding schools, so food is food. I’m pretty happy with most things that get put on my plate. At boarding school there was this sort of unidentified dish that used to get delivered for dinner, but I can’t really name it because I don’t know what it was. But when that popped up on the menu, people weren’t happy and we would probably sneak out and order a pizza or something. Beyonce or Rihanna? Beyonce.