Preloved boots give Eastern Cape township rugby a boost

Across the Eastern Cape, boys and girls run onto rugby fields in their school shoes or a pair of tekkies. Lincoln Mali, founder of the Mzwandile Mali Schools Rugby Champions League, tells BizNews how a visit by businessman Paul Gardiner to Kwanobuhle township led to Boots for Boys and Girls, a campaign to give pre-loved rugby boots to players who don’t have the right kit. The first collection box was placed at St Andrew’s College in Makhanda, and Mali hopes the drive will spread to other schools beyond the Eastern Cape. His league, which grew out of a tournament he started to honour his father to bring rugby to township schools, now includes 133 schools and is growing to 150 next year. Mali says his main aim is not only to produce rugby players. He wants them to stay at school, get good grades and have families of their own, because rugby gave him “great friendships, a lot of structure, a lot of discipline.”– Linda van Tilburg

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Edited transcript of the interview

Linda van Tilburg (00:00)
There are boys and girls who love to play rugby, but many run onto the field wearing just their school shoes or a pair of tackies because they don’t have the proper kit. So, there’s no shortage of talent, only a shortage of the right kit. It was this observation that inspired Boots for Boys and Girls, an initiative that collects pre-loved rugby boots and gives them a second life. Joining us to tell us more is Lincoln Mali, founder of the Mzwandile Mali Schools Rugby Champions League. Hi Lincoln, thanks so much for joining us.

Lincoln Mali (00:07)
Thank you for having me. It’s such a pleasure to have a chat with you.

Linda van Tilburg (00:27)
Are the kids keen to play rugby, both boys and girls?

Lincoln Mali (00:48)
It’s amazing. I started this journey twelve years ago to honour my father, Mzwandile Mali, and started a rugby tournament in township schools. I started with eight schools. That tournament has grown to 60 schools this year. But I felt that was not enough. I wanted them to have a league that they played throughout the season. An amazing group of South Africans, both here and abroad, offered their support and we started a league, and that league now has 133 schools from across the Eastern Cape.

One of the people who got interested in this was Paul Gardner, a South African who had spent a lot of time abroad. He came back to the country and said, “Guys, I want to help you with the league, but I want to go and see for myself, because I’ve got a business that borders Kwanobuhle township.” Paul came with his entire family and business colleagues and they saw the rugby. They loved what they saw. But Paul’s biggest observation was that the kids didn’t have the right equipment. They didn’t have the right shoes to play the game. He said, “Lincoln, what can I do?” I said, “Look, Paul, whatever anybody can do to help, these kids will play. Whatever they’ve got, they’ll play with.”

A couple of weeks later Paul called me and said, “Lincoln, I’ve got it. I’m going to start this initiative, and I’m going to start it with my old school, St Andrew’s College in Grahamstown, or Makhanda. We’re going to ask kids in established schools to give their much-loved rugby boots to boys and girls who don’t have them.” That was the beginning of this programme. It’s been amazing how the kids have responded. They saw the need and wanted to give to other kids who want to play the game like they do.

Linda van Tilburg (02:57)
So how big is it now? How many boots do you collect?

Lincoln Mali (03:01)
We started with the first team at St Andrew’s and they’ve challenged other schools. Paul has heard from other schools who want to be part of this movement. I was on a programme with SuperSport Schools where I spoke about this, and other schools have also indicated their need.

At the same time, I have a wonderful colleague who runs a Greater Chi tournament, which has some very strong girls’ schools taking part. I’ve linked him with Paul, so those girls’ schools will be beneficiaries too, because our league is mainly a boys’ league. Those two initiatives will be beneficiaries of the rugby boots that come from established schools.

Linda van Tilburg (04:04)
Have businesses come on board to support you?

Lincoln Mali (04:07)
Not yet. Paul does a lot of magic. He has set me up to speak to a number of businesspeople about the league and about the initiative to give equipment that schools don’t use, or any other help they can give. If you think about it, when you have about three thousand boys playing in a league full time, they’re away from drugs, they’re away from crime, they’re away from all negative influences. And when girls play the game, they can see opportunities to play for South Africa, because the Eastern Cape produces many young women who play for the national team.

So, we’re quite keen to engage with businesses that want to involve themselves practically with schools in townships and villages and see something that is already working and is backed by reputable businesspeople like Paul.

Linda van Tilburg (05:13)
Of course you’ve got a fantastic role model that they see, which is Siya Kolisi, the captain of the Springboks.

Lincoln Mali (05:19)
Indeed. One of the most fascinating things for me when we launched the league in Kwanobuhle was to play a video. The crowd couldn’t see the video, but they could hear the audio, and when they recognised Siya’s voice, you couldn’t describe how the young people felt, having such an icon who comes from those townships and has made it in rugby for the Springboks. He’s a back-to-back world champion. Then you’ve got people who came from those townships and won the Junior World Cup. There’s a lot of inspiration for young people when they see people from those environments who have made it in rugby, or someone like Mzwandile Stick, the assistant coach to Coach Rassie with the Springboks, who comes from those environments.

Linda van Tilburg (06:24)
So that’s boots, but what about mouth guards? Rugby is a rough sport.

Lincoln Mali (06:29)
Absolutely. Everything that anybody can imagine is needed on a rugby field. Mouth guards, pole pads that protect the kids, unused scrum machines that are no longer in use. All this equipment doesn’t exist at the moment for many of these boys and girls. I think sometimes people are not sure whether it would be okay to donate such things. I say to them that I played rugby when I was young and I used other people’s boots as well. There was no shame in using shoes or boots that were owned by somebody else. The gesture comes out of love and care, and that’s how you see the game growing.

And I think the game is going to grow. In our tournament we are moving from the 60 schools I mentioned to 72 schools next year. The league is going to move from 133 schools to 150 schools. So, the demand is huge, and the passion and enthusiasm are huge. Because we’ve had people like SuperSport Schools partnering with us for the last three years, people have seen these kids play and they’ve seen the talent that’s there. Standard Bank has been our partner for the last 12 years. So reputable brands have seen the benefit and we’re quite keen to have more partners join us and give whatever support they can. People like Siya and other Springboks have sent messages of support, from Willie to Makazole Mapimpi and all of these guys, saying, “We support you, keep playing.”

Linda van Tilburg (08:32)
Kids grow out of things. I’ve had children myself. Before there’s anything wrong with the shoe, you go to the next size. So, for kids it’s a no-brainer.

Lincoln Mali (08:42)
Absolutely. My boy abandoned the family sports, rugby and cricket, and went into basketball. Those basketball shoes are so expensive and I’m thinking they’re still in good nick, but he says no, he’d like to give them to somebody else who is less fortunate. Through that he ended up getting a part scholarship to play basketball in the US. So, the idea of kids giving to other kids gives them satisfaction, but also a sense of caring for others.

But you’re right. What kids want next season is not what they used in the previous season, and those boots can be used by kids who are more in need. There’s so much joy in seeing it. It’s such a South African thing to give to others, and that’s why I’m so glad to have someone like Paul as a partner, who saw something like this and went to St Andrew’s. When the boys at St Andrew’s were walking up and putting their boots in the box that Paul so lovingly created, there was so much pride. There was a sense of humility and joy in giving. So, I think the challenge they’ve put out to other schools will be met with a good response.

Linda van Tilburg (10:15)
Do you see this growing beyond the Eastern Cape?

Lincoln Mali (10:18)
I certainly think it will. It’s just about looking beyond what you see. Paul knew Kwanobuhle because his business borders it, but he had never seen the kids play. When he saw them, he saw the talent straight away. I can imagine that a school like Grey in Bloemfontein might see what is happening just outside their gates. In Paarl, they have Paarl Gymnasium and Paarl Boys, and they might see what’s happening around the wine farms with young players in those communities. I think it can grow in the way South Africans give to one another. So that when we celebrate the Springboks playing the finals next year, we have other kids who are also celebrating that they had a good year, and that they had a good pair of boots as well.

I think even at universities, you’d be surprised. At universities like Fort Hare and Walter Sisulu, the students come from those communities, but they don’t have the equipment. It just grows the sport and gives Rassie the right headache of having more and more players to choose from as the game grows.

Linda van Tilburg (11:47)
Lincoln, you told us a little about your league but tell us more about yourself and why you’re interested in rugby.

Lincoln Mali (11:55)
I come from a very strong rugby family. Rugby in my township, KwaZakele in the Eastern Cape, dates back more than 140 years. My dad’s own club was formed in 1894, and the first union was formed in 1887, so it’s got a big milestone next year. My dad’s club was the Orientals. I grew up learning about the game from my father. He played, his father played, so there’s a generation of people who played in townships and villages. I played at high school and a bit at university.

But I started to see rugby dying in the township and village schools where it was born. We were starting to see the growth of the game with the Springboks and Siya, but it was still dying there. So, I wanted to start a rugby tournament in my father’s honour, to see these kids away from the streets, showcasing their talent. Some of those kids are now playing at university; some are now playing at Graham’s College. We were also able to take a team to the UK, where we were invited by Sevenoaks Rugby Football Club. Kids who had never left their own townships could get on a plane and play in the UK, and they played amazing rugby.

Out of that we were invited to the Northwood tournament, which features some of the best rugby schools. We’ve been going there for the last two years, and we’ve been invited again for a third year. We’ve been invited to St Stithians for two years and we’re going back again. We’ve been invited to the Grey PE tournament for two years and we’re going again. Now Grey PE has invited us to another tournament in December, where a school from Scotland, Strathallan, is coming, and they’ve invited our team.

At the end of the tournament, we pick the best players and call them the Mzwandile Mali 15, named after my father. They wear the same kit that my father’s team wore back in 1894. That’s been the history. These kids have shown the talent they have, and some of them have made provincial teams, for Border and for EP under 18 and under 21. So, it’s about developing these young guys.

But for me, the biggest thing is not for them to be Springboks or to play for provincial teams. I want them to be very good young people. I want them to stay at school, go to university or college, get good grades and have their own families, because that’s what rugby gave me. Great friendships, a lot of structure, a lot of discipline. Those things are important to me. In many ways I see myself as a role model to young people, showing that somebody like me who grew up in a township can become CEO of a Nasdaq-listed company. And that’s how I plough back, by doing things like running this tournament and this league.

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