Grassroots role for Div
South African sports minister Fikile Mbalula has confirmed that former Springbok coach Peter de Villiers will be involved in setting up development projects aimed at stimulating grassroots rugby.
De Villiers has been without a job since he stepped down as coach of the national team after the World Cup last year, and approached SARU about performing a role in developing club and schools coaching this year, but was ignored by his former employers.
The charismatic coach had a successful career as a junior coach before stepping up to the top job after the 2007 World Cup, taking the SA Under-19 team to third place at the U19 World Championships in 1999 and gaining even greater success with the U21 team that he coached between 2004 and 2006.
De Villiers’ charges were placed third at the U21 World Championships in 2004, won the tournament in 2005 and came second in 2006 before he was appointed as the coach of the Emerging Springboks that won the Nations Cup in 2007.
Mbalula said that he was glad to have been able to make use of De Villiers’ significant experience, and explained that he will play a vital role in developing the sport at a grassroots level.
“It is a great pleasure to announce that we are getting Peter back into rugby to help us with development projects of the sport,” the sports minister told the Sowetan.
“We want him to develop the best model for grassroots rugby in the country. We are engaging him. The man has a wealth of knowledge that we need to tap into. Peter has done well for the country, including winning big events with the junior national teams,” Mbalula said.
Apart from his successful junior coaching career De Villiers also achieved success with the Springboks, beating the British and Irish Lions and winning the Tri-Nations in 2009, and Mbulala said that in his new role he will be focused on identifiying and nurturing talent to one day represent the national team.
“There is talent in abundance in the townships and villages in Gugulethu, Khayelitsha and the Eastern Cape.
“We want to see schools in Seshego, Bloemfontein, Mamelodi and other townships also playing rugby and producing great players for the Springboks,” he said.
