VIDEO: Boks get behind new academy
SPOTLIGHT: Mention the names Gio Aplon, Juan de Jongh, Elton Jantjies, Cornal Hendricks, Siyabonga Ntubeni, Nizaam Carr and Cecil Afrika and you will immediately have people’s attention.
These Springboks – De Jongh, Jantjies, Hendricks, Ntubeni and Carr – along with the BlitzBok legend, Afrika, are the names behind a new venture.
Rugby Academy South Africa, launched earlier this month, is a private, high-performance academy for ages three to 18.
The academy was launched in partnership with Generation Schools, which will host the first Academy Centre at the state of the art Sandown Sports Complex in Sunningdale, Cape Town.
Rugby Academy SA will offer young players the best high-performance training along with access to quality rugby expertise.
“It’s an incredible initiative and I don’t think there’s anything like this in South Africa,” World Cup hero Aplon said.
“If you look at the guys involved, the IP they have, the experience they have, being coached by Springbok coaches and world cup winning coaches.
“Hopefully it can be a success and influence the community,” Aplon added.
“I’m pretty excited about the idea where current players and older players share their knowledge with the younger generation and get the opportunity to see them having some fun and hopefully see them develop as rugby players,” said the World Cup-winning Bok flyhalf, Jantjies.
“What makes me excited is sharing my knowledge and experience with the students, to develop their skills and talent, to nurture the fundamentals about rugby, especially in the schools ” Afrika added.
“We are super excited to be involved with coaching the students,” De Jongh said, adding: “Coaching does go a long way, a lot of people think it is just about the passing and the kicking of the rugby ball.
“There are a lot of things when it comes to rugby development and you have to start the youngsters from a very young age.
“It’s getting the cadence right in the terms of running style, ensuring communication is on a good form.
“Small little things that make a big impact when it comes to professional rugby players.”
