The Investec
International Rugby Academy are proud to announce the success of their flagship
High Performance Players Course which ran from 28th November – 17th
December. The Coaches High Performance Course ran in tandem for two weeks (6 December – 17 December). The caliber of players on the course was
outstanding and they were certainly put to the test in a grueling match against
a powerful Wits team. After initially
struggling to find their rhythm the Investec Academy team started to implement
all they had learned and took control of the second half running in 3
impressive tries.
The line-up
of coaches was impeccable and offered a lifetime of experience and knowledge
which was passed onto the lucky young men:
Jeff Wilson (former All Black), Murray Mexted (All Black Legend), John
Plumtree (Sharks Head Coach), Dick Muir (Assistant Springbok Coach), Gary Gold
(Assistant Springbok Coach), John Mitchell (All Black and Lions Coach), Ian
MacIntosh (ex Springbok coach / Springbok selector) along with position
specific coaches, Corne Krige, Joost van der Westhuizen, Braam van Straaten,
Andre Snyman, Pieter de Villiers (French Prop), John Allan, Johan Ackerman,
Johan Kapp, Marius Hurter, Ian Macdonald and
Louis Koen.
This great
array of international coaches allowed these young men to flourish in their
individual positions as well as gain experience and exposure to some of the “icons“of
the game. This course has created a great platform for all involved to take
their careers to the next level; both personally and professionally.
It is
difficult to single out any one player in a situation like this, but after much
discussion we were able to choose five young men who had proven themselves throughout
the course and outshone the rest. Three
of the five young men were rewarded with the opportunity to travel abroad and
further their development in the game:
Roelof Smit (Waterkloof
and contracted to Blue Bulls) won the Penguins Rugby Award. This award will
allow Roelof the opportunity to experience the Hong Kong 7’s in March next year;
he will play in the 10’s tournament leading up to the world renowned Hong Kong 7’s.
The two Nando’s
International Scholarships were awarded to two very promising young men, Mike van
Vuuren (Grey High School, PE and now contracted to Cheetahs) and Richmond
Collins (Pretoria Boys and contracted to Blue Bulls). The Nando’s International
Awards will allow the players to received global experience; Mike and Richmond
will experience the International Rugby Academy of New Zealand.
All three of
these players were given this wonderful opportunity through scholarships; both Roelof
and Richmond were sponsored by KFC
and Mike by Primedia Sport.
Michael has
since been chosen for the Cheetahs Vodacom Cup side as well as the SA U20 side
touring Argentina currently.
The Investec
International Rugby Academy’s next high performance course will be 5 June – 24 June 2011. For further information call 011 7063355 or email
guy@investecacademy.com