Chase Minnaar - Captain of St Andrew's
Player Profile
On Saturday Chase Minnaar of St Andrew's College will lead his team out onto Lower Field for the Big Match of the year, for it will be K Day – the day Kingswood and St Andrew's meet, the greatest event in the Grahamstown calendar apart from the Grahamstown Festival which is just over.
It is always a big occasion but this year it is bigger than ever as St Andrew's is celebrating its 150th birthday and a huge gather of the Andrean family is expected this weekend.
Chase has Andreans on his mother's side, which is not surprising as the Eastern Cape farmer has often found education for his sons at College.
Chase was born in Graaff-Reinet on 15 July 1986, his father a stock farmer. He went to Union Primary School and then onto St Andrew's in Grade 8 (Std 6). He is a boarder in Armstrong House and loves boarding, following in his brother Ian's footsteps.
He has been a loose forward all his playing career and would like to do when he leaves school. He is looking to have a gap year and then go down to the Cape to study law at either UCT or Stellenbosch. Farming? Not really.
But at the moment the focus is on K Day. Chase, in his third season in the 1st XV, says: "It's the biggest fixture of the year. It is a serious and important match for the school. Kingswood are a good side and it will not be easy.
"It is a huge weekend as everybody has such high expectancy."
Deon Boshoff, the St Andrew's coach, writes about his captain.
Chase is a tough farm boy from Graaff-Reinet and arrived at College in Grade 8. He has always played on the flank representing A division teams throughout his school career. He made his first brief appearances in the senior sides as an Under-16 player where his potential as a devastating flanker began to emerge. He represented the 1st XV in 2004 and was selected as captain of the College side at the beginning of the 2005 season. Under his leadership this side has managed to pull off some exciting victories (and some near misses) against much bigger and stronger rugby-playing schools ranked highly throughout South Africa.
Chase certainly leads by example and lays his body on the line in every match. He is an excellent all-round player in his position he is dangerously quick on attack, and makes devastating crunching tackles on defence. It is hoped that he will not be a talent lost to South African rugby in the future. He believes in playing a sensible 15-man game, without ignoring the individuals flair and talent.
For a general view of St Andrew's, click here.
For a profile of the St Andrew's team, click here.
