PERSONALITIES AMONG THE SPRINGBOKS

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 204, 14 September 1937, Page 8

PERSONALITIES AMONG THE SPRINGBOKS

Farmers, Lawyers, Miners and Commercial Men \ '

' ■ Tbe Springboks have proved tbemselves to be 'oue oi 'the:4nost popular Eugby sides " to visit • New" Zealand. Tbey have been described as "hke- • :able" gentlenien" and ''very' human • youhg' men," and everybody who has met tbe inembers"Of -tlie team. bas re- j garded it as a privilege.: On the field they take their Eugby .j\tst as seriousJy as any otber touring team ; but off it tbey are, takeu all in all, qniet men witb fairly silnple- pleasures. and witb a quiet determination •• to get tbe best from a wonderful- tour. One thing is certain.' Tbey bave made a good impression on" New Zealanders and wherever they go they are welcomed as friends and good' sportsmen. Twenty-nine in number, the Springboks l'ollow many and varied occupaious. -They' are policemen, farmers, -teachers, lawyers and an ice-eream man. - But on the tour they are just ■"iootballers." • • ' As an advertisement for South Africa", tho captain, Philip Nel, both physically and menta'lly', cduld hardly" be bettered. ' He is modest to an ex-" tfexbe, and in interviews he refuses to talk freely about' himself. "He 'began his representative football* caree'r as • far back as 1921, playing" for ' Natal, wben he was only 17 and still at college, His football has been at severaJ stages interrupted ..because , of .demands u^xm his time as a farmer. Working on one of bis father's farms for two years he bad' to get up at 4.30 on a Saturday 'mor'ning ride 30 'miles by bor'se, and go an- ' otber 4-5 miles hy . car to tbe scene of'the wcek's football matcb: Not infrequently he travelled 150 miles teacb Saturday for his 90 minutes' football. As a, farmer b'e is keenly interested in New Zealand farming metkods. The work • of New Zealand 'farmers be describes as ltougb." On bis 300acre farm in' Sontb Africa bis ' position, -h.6 says, -is purely executive. ' He siuiply . tells tbe natives -. tbeir tasks for tbe day and tbey do tbem. People who bave met Danie Craven) the -vice-captain, are as enthiisiastic about bim as a personality . as tbey are about his fodtball. A student from Stellenboscb IJniversity, now a teacber at Grahamstown College, be is described as a deep and studious thinker wbo can talk autlioritatively on many subjects. He was destined" for the ministry until a. football acei- ; dent caused him to cbange bis vocation. Wherever he goes be- collects as i much as he can about - the .flora and f auna of the coun try and on this tour he is going back, far more heavily laden than he came. Already be . has a suitcase full of specimens and literature. Tbe visitors are certainly ' men of simple • pleasures. iSome are golfers, otbers are ardent curid-s'eekers, and many of tbem are keen photographers anxious -to obtain a complete record • in pictures of their tour. "Danie Cfaven is one of -the most enthusiastic of the men with cameras. He may be seerl- early- in- the morning oUt in, ■ search.of good "shots." M. M. Louw, brother of S. C. Louw is one of the keenest students of Rugby football. So keen is " he tbat he will often take a book on Rugby to bed with him and study it late into i the night. He is a bank clerk by profession.

W. E. ("Ebbo") Bastard is describ ed as "a jolly good sort." Like tbe captain ot tbe team> be is a farmer in' -Natal, and be is, in fact, tbe inscparable companion of Nel, Wlien the team reached Australia be waithe only member wearing a moustacbe, and on the way to New Zealand tbe otbers decided be should' have it removed. They appointed one of the Louws as barber and the job was. done. Bastard enjoyed the joke. The team has some clever humorists, of whom tbree are van de Vyver, Stratchan" and van den Berg. while S. C. Louw is looked upon as one of the .praetical jokers off the field and ho does much towards kceping the party entertained. Du Toib, referred to in Australia as' "the big, haudsome, shy'' man oi tbe side " is a researcb officer stationed * at • Ouderstepbort, where irnportant research wbrk in -animal diseases is carried out. "He- was un'lucky in Australia, haVing two bones of bis ■ vertebrae cracked. ' "It' was • dOubtiui whether he -would ever 'play' again, bui be -has now -'completely reboveredi. • " • • • - * / • . • '(Serry" Brahd;'" "South" "AfricaVNo. 1 full-back, altbdugK .in" the thirties, - is by' fkr 'tbe Best" tiaok in- Sbuth' Africa. He owns a sports outfltting store in Cape Town, and is one of Soutb Africa' s star baseball ifitchers but lbst season he' did' xiot f>)ky' baseball, ' for i'ebr of injury '.whibh might' prevent :him from' makiiig the"'trip to Australia and' New Zealand.'" • For many -years M. A,-> va-n , den Berg studied football . without • being able to take' part in it. ■ His- father . had an ice cream . concern,. and. it was part of the young man's job to see to i it ■ that • tbo supp'ly was at the .sports grounds to- meet tbo demand. He- saw mucb football, . and evidently. learned a lot. for, when at last , the urge to play was irresistible and he .was able to discard business for. pleasut'e iu playing time, be ; immediately. made bis mark as- a .player. , He started late, ■ but his rise to' big football was fapid. A- very irugged type of forward be is one of the fairhaired Springboks. Even if he does j make bis presence felt on the football field, he is very much liked by tbose who come into contact with hani. A good lock, he is also generally to be seen giving tine service on the iineout. Iu business his association with the manuiacture of ice cream is still retained ; he bas a controlling interest iu an ice cream factory in (Jape Town. To class Pierre (some pronounce iu Pirie) du Plessis de Villiers as tbe perfect gentieman oi' tbe party would not be a refiection on the otbers, gentlenien all. It is said that some aclmirers have looked upon him as Leslie Howard' s double. At any rate there is a - striking resemblance. For .neatness in dress, . there would be very keen competition among mcmbers of'tliis sidet but de Villiers would •bei hard to beat. - Put S. -R. Hofmeyr at the piaxio and be will find as mucb pleasure ruliniug his fingers over the keys as he; does-.in jiuking aboub the field of play. By .profession he is a solicitor, and is a graduate of the Cniversitv of ' Stellenboscb, • which produces South Alrica's backs in great measure and has done for years. A quiet and likeable fellow is l'. J," Lygter . a solicitor, who was admit ted to tlie Bar just before the tour but has not practised yet as a barrister. • D. O. Williams is about the quietest member of tlie team, but put him on the track aird he can burn up the -ground, Wllliains can slip olf tht liundred in evens ; is a Wcstern Province champion spriuter. In the ballroom lie is said to be worth catching. He is very4 keen on dancing. One would expect with such a band of strong men as the Springboks that among them there would be men who could acquit tbemselves well in the ring. Craven is a keen wrestler and so also is S. C, Louw. The two toI gether are said to be able to treat an audience to some really i'ast- action and bright entertainmeut in the wrestling riiig. A. D. Lawton, the wing-three-qu arter , is a powerful runner and ijs also a useful amatepr boxer. There are two detectives; L. C. Strachan aud Herman Broodryk. With their Police Force training they ♦.'ould, be hard men • to hump up against in a bout calling for the application of hammer locks, arm bars, and the like. I