Kwagga's long journey to the top
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Kwagga Smith fulfilled another dream when his name was read out during the Springboks’ World Cup squad announcement in Johannesburg.
The 26-year-old has had a long journey to get where he is now after starting as a full-time Sevens player with the BlitzBoks back in 2013.
He made an almost seamless transition to XV-man game a few years ago and his standout performance for the Lions in Super Rugby got Rassie Erasmus’ attention.
There was a lot of talk on whether Smith was going to be included in Erasmus’ 31-man group and it seemed like he was directly competing with Rynhardt Elstadt for that final spot.
Ultimately, it was the Lions player who got the nod and he is living the dream.
Kwagga Smith was an absolute monster for South Africa Sevens on the series. Now he’s been named in the @Springboks squad for #RWC2019. Will we see more of this in Japan? pic.twitter.com/2fNKOamztf
— World Rugby Sevens (@WorldRugby7s) August 27, 2019
“This was a dream since I was a schoolboy,” Smith told reporters after the squad announcement. “The Sevens was also a dream; the Olympics was a dream and the Commonwealth [Games] was a dream.
“It’s just awesome to be a part of it and make it this far because it is surely something that everybody strives for.”
Smith made his Bok debut against Wales in Washington DC last year. However, his next appearance was only against the All Blacks in this year’s Test in Wellington.
“It was bad for me to just play one Test. That’s not who I am and I didn’t see myself as a Springbok if I just played one Test.
“I want people to talk about me as a Springbok, so it was just awesome that coach Rassie gave me a chance again,” he added.
@rugby365com
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