The Stormers had a wonderful chance last week to colour in another corner of South African sport’s bigger picture. But they dropped the paintbrush in the dust when they failed to name Juan de Jongh as their captain for the 2015 season.
Let me say this right off the bat: I am as a big a fan of Duane Vermeulen as you will find in our rugby-mad city. I think the absence of the injured Vermeulen for most of the 2012 Super Rugby campaign was one of the biggest reasons the Stormers fell out of the comp in the semi-final at home. (That, and Allister Coetzee’s tactical straitjacket).
In fact, now that I think of it, other than Morné du Plessis (and there will always only be ONE Morné!) Duane Vermeulen is probably my favourite No 8 of all time. I admire Duane because he is a hard man of rugby. One of the original grizzlies. I love the way Duane takes contact: chin out, beard bristling in the breeze. I love the gallops down the touchline. I love the way he gets under the skin of opponents. Within the opening 10 minutes, Duane will be pushing and shoving and needling and cajoling. Laying down the physical ultimatum as all hard men of the game do. And he seldom makes a thoughtless play on the field.
So this has got nothing to do with Duane. He will be a fine captain. But the bigger picture absolutely demands that Juan de Jongh should lead the Stormers outjies out. Regular readers of this column will know what I mean by “the bigger picture”. It was important that Peter de Villiers was the first black Springbok coach. It was important that Hashim Amla was the first black Proteas Test captain. And so it is important that Juan de Jongh is the first black Stormers captain. You see the through line?
In the Cape Times sports office, we sometimes call Juan de Jongh “one-trick pony” because he always steps off his inside foot. It’s an affectionate term more than anything else, because De Jongh is a classy stallion who should be in the Springbok stable. The problem is that Heyneke Meyer seems to have no interest in him, which is a bit of a shocker.
It’s not as if the Bok midfield is full of players who can cut the line. And Juan de Jongh does have that precious ability to beat players with footwork and skill. He is also a terrific defender. And he has come a long way as a captain. I cringed a little when he kept touching Little Napoleon (aka Jaco Peyper) during his first game as Western Province captain against the Kings down in The Bay whenever Peyper explained a penalty. You just don’t physically touch the referee in rugby. It’s one of those unspoken laws passed down the ages. A bit like not kissing a judge in court.
But since then, De Jongh has shown some impressive leadership credentials, and of course he lifted the Currie Cup high into the night sky last October. So he deserves the job, for rugby reasons and for reasons beyond rugby.
The Stormers should have made Duane Vermeulen the leader of the forwards. They should have sent out a powerful message of hope and progress by making Juan de Jongh Stormers captain. We can’t make a real difference in our society if we don’t recognise the right choices that have to be made – on the factory floor, in the boardroom, behind the pizza counter, in the corridors of parliament, and at Newlands.
Ian Smit is the sports editor of the Cape Times and a former rugby writer of the paper.
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