I know I whine a bit about the way in which the Craven Week
has become, in effect, a knockout tournament, far removed from the festival of
rugby it used to be – played according to the values laid down by Dr Danie
Craven himself, which expressly forbade any notion of a “winner of the week.”
The week has become
the logical outcome of the professionalisation of rugby at school level – and
that has meant many of the “old ways” have been left behind.
That saddens me, especially when there are lines crossed,
ethical and educational, in pursuit of victory, but it is still the greatest
tournament at school level, anywhere that the game is played.
I’m going to be glued to the TV next week. And, even though
I said I won’t be going through, I won’t be surprised if I end up getting into
my car, or bumming a lift from someone, and taking the two-hour trip up the N4
to Middelburg on one of the days, any way.
Being selected for a provincial team has always been the
ultimate dream of any schoolboy player and, although the quotas imposed on
teams, has blurred the lines, I think it still is. I’ve had my say on the
imposition of minimum numbers in the teams and other than saying yes -
transformation is absolutely necessary, and no – it’s not being handled fairly
or effectively, I’ll leave it at that.
There are 16 teams at the Craven Week, and 20 at the Academy
Week and only five or six have a realistic chance of ever making the main game.
For the rest of the teams not much has changed, I guess. Those boys are closing
off their school rugby careers – or rugby at any level, for many of them – with something special, getting to know new team mates, and soaking up the unique
experience.
And off the field there will still be those who like me have
been going to the week for years, pretending to have a keen eye for emerging
talent and taking down names that we are going to be hearing again in the years
to come.
I know the big festivals like Noord-Suid and Wildeklawer,
together with SuperSport Schools, have reduced the mystique, and much of the
cream of schoolboy rugby is already well-known to us by the time Craven Week
comes around.
But those events are notoriously pale in complexion. The
good thing about the quota system is that the provinces have been forced to dig
deep to find black boys who can play at this level, and there are schools who are
developing them in numbers.
There will be gems unearthed in Middelburg next week.
It’s not quite the same anymore, but there is still nothing
like the Craven Week. And every game will be on TV – that’s how special it is.
And FNB are the new sponsors. That's great news. They pioneered serious financial involvement in school rugby with their Classic Clashes, and the Easter Festivals back in the day. I have good memories of the days when I used to cover those events. I'm hoping they do what good sponsors do - pay up, back off and let the boys take centre stage. Do that and your brand will soar.
