Holding aloft a trophy, the champion has arrived. The gladiatorial conquest is accomplished. The captain leading his troops in battle has vanquished the enemy and he stands proud. The victor. The face of the victorious. He is your captain.
By Michael Marnewick
Jean de Villiers will continue to lead the Stormers, with able back-up of long time campaigner Schalk Burger who has only just returned to active rugby after 18 months on the sidelines. De Villiers is the current Springbok captain and brings a huge leadership aspect to his game and to his team and will hope for an injury-free season which has dogged his long term career.
Burger is back, having played minor roles for Western Province in the Currie Cup last year, and then featuring for the Barbarians against Fiji in December. He originally injured his knee in the opening round of the 2012 Super Rugby competition, but his return to play was hampered by a subsequent calf muscle injury. He was then diagnosed with a cyst near his spine and following treatment for that, he was laid low with bacterial meningitis in a nightmare year-and-a-half for the 2004 World Player of the Year.
On Thursday, Bismarck du Plessis was announced as Sharks captain for the season by Director of Rugby Jake White and it will be interesting to see how he goes. Du Plessis, with his drive and motivation, the ultimate competitor, can always be counted on to lead from the front. He doesnāt shy away from physicality, or any aspect of the game and his brute strength and seniority in the side are all big factors counting in his favour.
His coachās endorsement says plenty about how highly-regarded he is. āBismarck brings a winning culture to The Sharks; heās a winner,ā said White in announcing du Plessis as his captain. āHeās won an Under 19 World Cup, an Under 21 World Cup, a senior World Cup and a Currie Cup. There arenāt too many guys that can put that on their CVs.
āThere is no doubt in my mind heās a freak, one of the best players in the world, the best hooker in the world.ā
Those who will deputise for him if he is off the field are Pat Lambie, Jean Deysel and Odwa Ndungane.
Pierre Spies will again lead the Bulls this year. A youthful side, he will certainly call on the experiences and leadership of a Bulls icon, Victor Matfield, should the former successful Bulls captain come out of retirement. Much has been spoken of his return to play ā those for and those advising against ā but he does bring a certain aura to Loftus and Spies will depend on his leadership in what could be a tough year for the Pretoria side.
The Cheetahs havenāt as yet unveiled their captaincy for the year, but Adriaan Strauss is a shoo-in. He has successfully led the side for some time now and is a real āfollow-my-leadā kind of captain. The Cheetahs enjoyed their best year ever in Super Rugby last year, earning a place in the qualifiers, but suffered a disappointingly narrow 15-13 loss to the Brumbies in Canberra.
Without their talisman fetcher Heinrich Brussow for nearly half of the tournament, out with a torn ligament, Straussās job of calling on his senior players will be made that much tougher, but the opportunity then exists for other senior players to prove their own leadership.
The Lions will only be naming their squad at the end of January, but loose forward Warren Whitely is expected to be named captain with Derick Minnie serving as his deputy.
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Although written to honour the death of American president Abraham Lincoln, excerpts of Whitman’s poem ring true here:
O Captain! My Captain! our fearful trip is done;
The ship has weather’d every rack, the prize we sought is won;
The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting,
While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring
O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;
Rise upāfor you the flag is flungāfor you the bugle trills;
For you bouquets and ribbon’d wreathsāfor you the shores a-crowding;
For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning;
Walt Whitman (1865)
