Smith: 'Pro on pro in Varsity Cup'
The FNB Varsity Cup presented by Steinhoff International has grown in stature so much since 2008 that ‘it now offers amateur players the opportunity to experience professional rugby’.
And André Smith, the experienced FNB UJ flyhalf, knows exactly what he is talking about in his third season of Varsity Cup action
“There is little doubt that the Varsity Cup competition has become one of highlights on the South African rugby calendar,” he told this website.
“In 2008 you still had a chance to get away with a lack of talent, planning and preparation, but the competition turned ‘pro’ for all practical purposes in 2009. I am not referring to lucrative player contracts, but rather the overall paradigm shift to being professional in everything you do.
“The preparations, planning and conditioning started earlier [in 2009], for most teams in October 2008 already. Being stronger, fitter, faster, more agile and better conditioned than the first season meant the stakes were higher and the margin for error so much smaller,” Smith told varsitycup.co.za.
“With two matches being televised every Monday, the most promising players came to the attention of provincial head-hunters and for many the dream to play rugby professionally came true at the conclusion of the Varsity Cup season,” he added.
Smith has been an FNB UJ regular for four years. In this period (in 2008 to be exact), UJ won the ultimate prize in Golden Lions club rugby, the Pirates Grand Challenge League, when Smith was able to call upon the likes of Jean Deysel (now a Springbok) and Walter Venter as teammates.
Looking ahead to the rest of the 2010 Varsity Cup, and his beloved UJ’s title aspirations, Smith acknowledged: “We have learnt, from experience, not to start counting our chickens before they hatch. We take it game by game and, right now, we’re eating, drinking and sleeping the Maties [UJ’s oppopents Monday in their first home game of the season].
“We know it will be tough and an overall improvement in our game is required if we want to beat them.
“They are most definitely the 2010 pace-setters, but we have the advantage of playing at home. There is also the question of how much has been asked of the Maties in their first two matches (against FNB NMMU and FNB TUT Vikings), in which they both scored runaway victories,” said Smith.
Time, it seems, will answer that question; so make sure you get down to the UJ Stadium on Monday at 6.30pm!
By Morris Gilbert
