Venter to coach the Baby Boks

Former Springbok centre Brendan Venter and Nazeem Adams, head coach of the Western Province Under-19 side, have been appointed as assistant coaches of the South African Under-20 side.

Venter and Adams were selected after an extensive interview process, which involved SA U20 head coach Dawie Theron. They started working with Theron and a preliminary squad of almost 50 players at the SA U20 training camp in Stellenbosch today.

Venter amassed 17 Test caps for the Springboks between June 1994 and October 1999, and he featured in two Rugby World Cups. He recently returned to South Africa following a successful coaching stint at UK club Saracens.

Adams, a former scrumhalf in his playing days, has been part of WP coaching structures for more than a decade, starting out at the U18 Craven Week side in 1997. In between, he coached their U19 and U21 sides, as well as assisting with the Vodacom Cup and Currie Cup teams at the union.

“Both Brendan and Nazeem have extensive coaching experience at various levels of the game and it’s fantastic to have them in our structures,” said Theron.

“Brendan is a household name in South African rugby and he proved his coaching credentials when he turned Saracens around in the last few seasons, while Nazeem has a proven track record at Western Province, where he’s done exceptionally well with their age-group teams and higher up.

“They bring with them a wealth of experience and I’m looking forward to seeing their inputs on the field as we build towards next year’s Junior World Championships here in South Africa.”