Schoolboys get Bok contracts
Fri, 09 Jul 2010 13:24
Cream of the crop: SA Schools stars Craig Barry (left), William Small-Smith (centre) and Tshotsho Mbovane pose with SA Sevens coach Paul Treu
Three of the most promising young players in South Africa have signed contracts to play for the Springbok Sevens team over the next two years, the South African Rugby Union announced on Friday.
The trio of SA Schools stars are William Small-Smith of Grey College and Free State and Craig Barry and Tshotsho Mbovane - both of whom hail from Paul Roos and represented Western Province at the recent Under-18 Craven Week in Welkom.
Barry is an attacking fullback, while Small-Smith and Mbovane play at centre. They were selected for the SA Schools Under-18 team after shining for their respective provinces in Welkom.
All three players are products of the SARU U18 High Performance programme spearheaded by Herman Masimla. They will also represent the High Performance squad next week in three international fixtures against the U18 teams of France, England and Namibia.
The players' two-year contracts will start from January 1, 2011, giving them the chance to complete their final school year.
Springbok Sevens coach Paul Treu said the signing of the three schoolboy stars signified the introduction of a new career path for young professional players in South Africa.
"It is crucial that we create opportunities for our many young promising players," Treu said.
"South Africa is blessed with so much talent and not every youngster can break into the senior ranks.
"These three players represent the start of a new direction for us and I am confident that the High Performance programme will deliver many more players of their calibre in the future.
"It would be great if we can go to the Olympics in 2016 and these three players are established players of the Springbok Sevens team," Treu added.
Masimla explains the purpose of the High Performance programme: "SARU has established a HP system that acts as a pathway that reaches from junior level right to the senior ranks.
"This player pathway is based on the long term athlete development model, where players are identified and kept in the HP system for as long as possible."
The Springbok Sevens training squad assembles at their base in Stellenbosch on Monday.
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