TRIBUTE TO NEL

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Volume 81, Issue 73, 18 December 1937, Page 17

TRIBUTE TO NEL

REASONS FOR SPRINGBOKS' SUCCESS DANIE CRAVEN'S OPINION INCIDENT IN "AFRIKAANS." In an interview, on his return hoipe, D, H. Craven, vice-eaptain of the Springbok Rugby team which toured New Zealand and Australia last sea* sens, said he was both glad and sorry to be home — glad to be back in Grahamstpwn but sorry to lose the com* panjonship of his fellow members of the team. "I shall miss those grand fellows," he said. "All the time we were just like one big family," The Springbok vice-captpin attribut* ed the success of the tour tp . the splendid team-spirit of the fellpws and the great leadership of Philip Nel, whom he described as a very fine eaptain. Many lasting friendshjps wero made on the tour, he added, espeoially in New Zealand, where the people were "mad on Rugby." Craven found that many people in Australia and New Zealand were curiougly ignqrant of South Africa. Mar.y people had called at Durbaq and Capetown during the war ana thought they knevv South Afriea from end to end. Beeause of that, one man surprised Craven by teiling him he knew some Afrikaans. Cjayen asked him what he knew in Afrikaans and was told, "I know "Sakabona'Wmean "Hullo," an Anglicised kitchen variation of the Zulu ivord "Sbona," Craven told of another amusing inpident. When the team was leaving a New Zealand station by train, among the crowd seeing them pff was a ypung wopian who was chatting animatedly to a departing Springbok. A South African visitor at the station made a disparaging repiark about the girl in Afrikaans. Judge the aniazemeut of this critic when the girl turned and withered him with the sc&thing retort: "A^en't his manners also in Afrikaans?" She wa# a South African Rugby enthuslast visiting New Zealand. Craven said.tkey heard a good deal of Afrikaans in New Zealand and Australia, meeting a great many South African visitors in both countries. Feft Up With Rugby. r- Speaking generaily, Craven said the team had become almost fed up with Rughy by the time the tour came to' an end, for it hgd bee« very strenuous and they were tired out by playing 40 minutes eacli way. Lochner was also enthusiastic about the splendid friendshlpa of the tour and though he was glad to be home at Kingswood Coilege again, he said he would miss his team mates and the wonderful experiences of the tour. He also preferred New Zealand wits its wonderful scenery, mountains, lakes and snow. ~ Apart from the big coastal cities, the team did not see much of Austrsilici* The football played on the tour was wonderful and Lochner wished that South Africans generaily could have seen it. They had had a wonderful tour and it was almost heart breaking to feel that it was all over. C. P. Lochner, the back who showed such wonderful form in the flnal Test match, was most enthusiastig abput the captainey of Philip, Nel. "He was a wonderful leader," he said, "and deserves every praise. Our vietories were due to his great leadership, whieh was one of the main reasons for the wonderful sucess of the tour,"