By Lucky Vince Pienaar
It’s a good thing Kwagga Smith didn’t want to be a movie star. He simply does not have the face for it, does he? But then, there was a time when, at under 100kg, he would have been considered too small to be a Springbok forward.
The way Smith puts his body on the line every time he goes onto a rugby field is always impressive and his ability to steal balls from rucks and mauls is legendary. His nose must have been broken a few times – nobody gets born with a nose that shape – but he is never injured. Tough as nails, as they say.
He told RugbyPass in an interview that growing up on the farm in Lydenburg in Mpumalanga gave him a mental advantage that made him a successful Springbok.
“On a farm you have no choice but to tackle all sorts of challenges,” he said.
“Loading 50kg bags onto a 30-ton fertiliser truck, and lucerne bales onto a tractor-trailer strengthens your body, and particularly your hands, in a very different way. When you’re doing that for hours on end, it can shape your mindset as well.”
Bongi Mbonambi, with his bright smile, has said: “Not much happens on the farm where I grew up.”
But he, like Kwagga, believes that coming from a farming community shaped him to go the extra mile – and dig deep – when he’s on the rugby field.
He talks about the Springbok front row going lower and stronger.
“When we scrum, we go to the gutter,” he proclaims proudly.
It’s no surprise that rock-hard Bismarck du Plessis is also a farm boy. He loves being on his farm in Bethlehem in the Free State. Nobody has ever denied his ability to play and his almost superhuman physical strength, and certainly nobody is going to question his strength face-to-face.
He may be just a few weeks away from 40 years of age, but he is not finished with rugby – although he might soon disappear to work the wheat fields of the Free State.
And what about Daan Human? Wearing his little soft hat, he looks everything like the Bloemfontein farm boy, but then he also looks the part of the formidable Springbok scrum coach. A giant of a man, at almost 120kg, he played his rugby for the Free State and Toulouse among others.
Pictured above: Kwagga Smith with RG Snyman.
Image source: Springboks/X
