Growing up in a life of poverty wasn’t easy for Zinhle Ndawonde.
But the Springbok women’s rugby star believes the struggles she faced as a teenager has helped her to become the strong successful woman she is today.
“I’m a breadwinner for two of the most important people in my life - my mom and sister,” says Ndawonde.
“It has taught me to be a strong woman, and to always work hard.”
Last weekend, the 28-year-old KwaZulu-Natal born rugby player made her Test debut for the Springboks women’s team against Wales in Cardiff.
While the Springboks may have ended up going down to the Welsh 19-5, Ndawonde said it was a humbling experience.
“It was an emotional moment for me, standing in front of all those people, singing the national anthem, knowing that we here to represent everyone back home.
“We lost, unfortunately. However, the girls performed really well, considering that it was our first test match after four years of not playing international rugby (for 15s).”
In the short space of a few years, Ndawonde has become one of South Africa’s most sensational women’s rugby players.
Aside from her superb performances, Ndawonde also shoulders the responsibility of captaining her provincial team, The Sharks, as well as vice-captaining the Springboks.
But what makes Ndawonde even more special is that she also earns a living as a firefighter.
She works at King Shaka International Airport in Durban as a firefighter during the week, and on weekends, steps out onto the rugby field.
“It’s quite special to do something that you love, and at the same time, be able to help others. It really is a great job.
“My job and rugby requires me to be fit at all times, to be able to save lives or perform national duties. So that’s great.
“There is also a gym at work, which makes everything easy, and on the four days that I’m off, I squeeze in some field sessions.
“My company (Airports Company of SA) is very supportive, they give me days off work. So things work out well.”
While Ndawonde relishes the opportunity to fight fires and win points on the rugby field, she admits it comes with plenty of challenges.
“The most challenging thing about being a women’s rugby player is that people don’t think you good enough because you play a male-dominated sport. And with being a firefighter, people often think the same thing.”
While the former Parkhill Secondary student loves being a firefighter, she would love to be able to focus on just her rugby career.
“If women rugby players had earned the same money as our male counterparts, we would not have to have a job, and we could actually try and focus on our rugby careers.
“But, it is difficult because we can’t feed our families by just the little we get for tournaments.”
Speaking about her rugby career, Ndawonde says that rugby “chose her”.
“I started at high school, where my teacher introduced me to the sport, and I instantly fell in love with it.
Rugby chose me, and I developed quite a strong passion for it. From that passion, my dream was to be a professional Springbok player.
“I love rugby. It brings all the girls from different backgrounds to make us one family.
“I love the feeling of singing the national anthem which reminds me exactly where I come from, and where I want to be.”
Ndawonde’s exploits on the rugby field has also inspired girls from her community in Chesterville, Durban, to take up the sport.
“I’ve inspired many girls in my area who see me running and ask to join me and be part of my rugby club.
“I also try to give back to the community. Currently, I am coaching the U18 girls for Salga (the South African Local Government Association) games taking place in December,” she says.