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| | Wednesday, 26 June, 2002, 13:11 GMT 14:11 UK SA Rugby urged to drop quotas Paulse is a regular fixture in the Springboks side South African rugby administrators are accused of 'driving whites out of rugby' in a controversial new book. Disaffected Afrikaners including former Springbok greats Frik du Preez and Jannie Engelbrecht blame South Africa's declining Test fortunes on the quota policies adopted by SA Rugby, who run the country's professional game. The seven contributors to "Struggle Rugby, A Sport in Crisis," claim the existence of a 'neo-racist' plan to systematically drive whites out of the game. And they believe quotas to encourage the development of black players are actually killing the game in the Republic and should be abolished.
The system, the book says, "promotes players who, in many instances, are not as good as the players they are keeping out of the teams. Thus the possibility grows that the wrong players are being developed to play Test rugby." It argues: "Obsolete ideas such as disadvantaged groups in rugby should be discarded. "The disadvantaged groups have now been the advantaged groups for a long time. "It is time to discard the controversial and highly emotional quota system as it is not normal and it is now time for normal sport." South African rugby has formal quotas at all levels of the game except at Super 12 and Test level, although 'gentlemen's agreements' are in place to ensure that white-only teams are not fielded. Against Wales in Bloemfontein on 8 June, the Springboks fielded three black players in their starting XV and another two on the bench.
The national team has not fielded an all-white side since June 1999. The authors of the book also criticised a scheme to encourage the appointment of black coaches and administrators in a sport that is still dominated by whites. They are particularly critical of an unpublished SA Rugby document called Vision 2003, which sets out financial incentives to provinces as part of its' targets for 'transformation'. Unions that exceed quotas on and off the field receive R25,000 (�1,600) for appointing a black coach and R10,000 (�600) for a black player. "In essence it [Vision 2003] is a chilling document of neo-racism and prejudice in rugby drawn up to systematically work whites out of rugby, especially where money is at stake," says the book. Falling standards At the book's launch in Centurion on Tuesday, former South African Rugby Football Union (SARFU) president Louis Luyt also claimed falling standards meant the sport was heading towards bankruptcy. Luyt was forced to resign his post in 1999 when he took former South African president Nelson Mandela to court over his plan to institute a commission of inquiry into rugby. And he claimed SA Rugby is in danger of not having its lucrative contract for television rights with Newscorp extended at the end of the current arrangement in 2005. "If Newscorp don't see an improvement, and they do not get out of rugby what they want, then we can see the contract disappear," said Luyt. "If that happens, the doors may as well be closed for SA Rugby." SA Rugby was due to discuss the book's comments at a board meeting on Wednesday. | | See also:  13 Jun 02 | International 29 May 02 | International 20 May 02 | International 16 May 02 | International 13 May 02 | International Internet links: The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Top International stories now: Links to more International stories are at the foot of the page. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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