Beast appointed to Sharks board

JOHANNESBURG — Retired World Cup-winning Springbok Tendai “Beast” Mtawarira (pictured) has been appointed to the Sharks board, the franchise announced yesterday.

The 117-Test capped former loosehead prop spent 13 years at the Shark Tank before retiring in 2019 after amassing 156 Super Rugby appearances.

Having hung up his boots, Mtawarira will now rub shoulders with Sharks chief executive officer Eduard Coetzee, internationally acclaimed lawyer Marco Masotti of MVM Holdings, the Sharks’ majority shareholders, and SuperSport CEO Marc Jury, who also sit on the board.

Aspen Pharmacare group CEO Stephen Saad will continue as Sharks chairperson, while former CEO Bryan van Zyl serves as KwaZulu-Natal Rugby Union president.

The franchise also appointed their first woman to the board, Phathokuhle Zondi, the former CEO of the Sports Science Institute in Cape Town.

“Being a former player, he (Mtawarira) understands players’ needs and his voice is a crucial one at the boardroom table,” the Sharks said in a statement.

“As a sporting body and a business, the Sharks have tapped deeply into the intellectual capital they have attracted in their quest to be not only a globally recognised brand, but a highly-respected one.

“This board represents the best rugby and business brains available and can only add to what the Sharks team is building towards on the pitch as the rugby landscape enters new horizons and speaks to and attracts new audiences in the Northern Hemisphere and beyond.” —