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Russia has become an unexpected land of opportunity for South African players and coaches, he writes JON CARDINELLI in the latest SA Rugby magazine.
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Not long ago, most players would have resisted the idea of spending a season or two in the cold of Kazan or Siberia. Opportunities in South Africa were plentiful for both the old and the young; Players who left the country often did so for lucrative contracts in Europe, the UK and Japan. Russia was simply not on the radar.
The world has changed in the last two years and rugby with it. SA Rugby recently slashed its franchise roster from six to two, and heading into the new year, the future for the Cheetahs and Southern Kings was uncertain.
A significant number of players who have failed to secure contracts with neighboring franchises, or in England, France or Japan, have gone east to explore an opportunity in Russia. This opportunity has been sold as a stepping stone, as it may well lead to more lucrative club deals or test selection.
“Playing in Russia can provide South Africans with a path to Europe,” says Rynhard van As, a former South Western District Eagles head coach who joined Enisei-STM’s management team last year.
“The standards in Russia are high and the setup is professional. The money is very good and the medical assistance and taxes are covered. If you come here with a positive attitude, and if you accept challenges like language and cold, you will have an incredible experience. Also, there may be greater opportunities in the future, such as a contract in France or the possibility of playing for Russia in a World Cup. ‘
Jeremy Jordaan, for example, has managed to enter one of the best tournaments in Europe through the back door. After spending much of his career in the Currie Cup First Division, the mighty blockade took a chance on Enisei, a club based in the heart of Siberia. Jordaan played 23 games for the club in 2019 and was later signed by Agen in the French Top 14.
More than 60 South Africans are involved in the Russian divisions. Almost half of them compete at the top level. They go as it says SA Rugby magazine that the numbers will increase as “more and more players come to Russia in the wake of recent game-changing events.”
A large number of Super Rugby players left South Africa at the end of the previous World Cup cycle. The Covid-19 crisis accelerated the exodus both east and west. South Africa’s smaller unions have struggled to retain their best players. The Cheetahs have been removed from the Pro Rugby roster. After the liquidation of the Southern Kings, the best players have left the Eastern Cape in droves.
A season in Russia has offered some of these exiles an opportunity. Russia aims to host the 2027 World Cup and, if that offer fails, the 2031 World Cup. Rugby managers seek to raise the profile and standards of the local game by stacking the best clubs with foreigners, and they are in the market for South African players of all ages.
However, many may be skeptical about an adventure in the great unknown of rugby. Van As, former Bulls stalwarts JP Nel and Jaco Engels, and several players admitted they had reservations when they were first approached by officials within the Russian rugby setup.
Van As led SWD to the Currie Cup First Division title in 2018. The financial situation in the union deteriorated and players and coaches were told their contracts would not be renewed.
After receiving an offer to train in Russia, as Enisei’s back and skills coach, Van As investigated the structures and found that several other South Africans were already involved.
Nel was part of the Bulls team that won three Super Rugby titles and several Currie Cup trophies in the mid to late 2000s. He worked with Lyn Jones as an assistant coach for the Namibian national team before he decided to explore a chance with Strela-Agro last season. At the time, the Kazan club, based 700 kilometers east of Moscow, had yet to qualify for the main league.
Nel led Strela to the division title in his first season at the helm. After that win, he called up Engels, a former Bulls teammate and later Namibia’s assistant coach. The great pillar had promised Nel that he would lend his scrum expertise to the cause if Strela rose to the top flight.
Nel says that Strela has made progress since then and that the growing South African contingent has been at the heart of the club’s success.
“In the past, Russian teams filled their foreign complement with Georgians, as Georgia has a number of good Russian-speaking players,” explains Nel. “Lately we have seen more South Africans filling these foreign positions.
“The Russians have always respected the way South Africans play rugby. The Springboks’ victory in the 2019 World Cup has certainly enhanced that reputation. Clubs value the defensive and charging strength of our players. We also have a high level of skill, even at a young age because our youth structures are very strong. ”
Strela has eight South Africans on his books. The Russian federation may be prepared to increase the foreign quota from eight to ten, and that figure excludes two foreigners under the age of 21 destined for development. In five years, these young players will be eligible to play for Russia. Older South African players can also appear on the test level.
“I played club rugby in Japan towards the end of my career,” adds the former Bulls center. “ I saw how they recruited a large number of foreigners at the beginning to raise the bar and grow the game in the country before the 2019 World Cup.
‘Russia is trying to achieve something similar. It’s a developing sport in this part of the world, and they are determined to succeed. ”
Nel and Engels keep in touch with Van As, despite the fact that the latter lives in four time zones in Krasnoyarsk. Deep in Siberia, mercury can drop to 45 degrees C below in winter.
South African coaches and players have learned to embrace the cold and culture. The former Blitzbok and Pumas striker Carel du Preez believes his decision to move to Enisei earlier this year has been justified.
“Things were not looking particularly good for me at the Pumas, but many players are in a similar position,” says the 27-year-old. “The smaller unions in South Africa have been hit financially and as a result are struggling to pay their players. You cannot survive on a salary of R15,000 if you are a professional gamer.
“Opportunities in South Africa have become slim,” he continues. “Players who are not seen as the cream of the crop, like me, have to weigh their options. I see the Russian opportunity as a back door to Western Europe, although I am committed to Enisei and want to help rugby in this country grow.
“This is a better opportunity than the one we have playing for a smaller union in South Africa. It may also be better for some players who do not appear regularly in the Super Rugby level. Unless you are one of the best Super Rugby players who plays a certain number of games, you are not really in the framework of a move abroad to one of the big French or English clubs.
Now that I am here, I will have the opportunity to face teams like the Worcester Warriors, Dragons, Castres and others. I will have the opportunity to show the world what I can do. ‘
Former Blue Bulls wing Earll Dowrie was one of the top scorers at the 2018 SuperSport Challenge. Since then, he has battled for playing time with the Bulls and later Griquas. The switch to Enisei may well be a stepping stone to bigger things.
‘If you are not well known in South Africa and you don’t have regular chances at the Super Rugby, Pro14 or even Currie Cup level, you will have a hard time making ends meet as a player. So if you get an offer to play the game you love and get paid for it, you have to grab it with both hands, ” he says.
‘I still have colleagues who ask me what it is like in Russia, because they are skeptical. However, I am committed to making the most of this opportunity. I’m not sure where it can lead us.
Engels, an uncompromising strut in his prime, believes South Africans have the physical and mental strength to succeed in a tough and sometimes brutal Russian rugby environment.
“Time takes some getting used to,” he says. “It’s not like South Africa where you basically live in shorts when you train in the field and in the gym. You are out there with a hat on your head, jackets, furs … The truth is that we do not play in the snow, since it is low season, but it is cold long before winter.
“The mindset, however, is something that South Africans will respect,” Engels explains. “The term we use is ‘sobaka’, which means dog in Russian. You need to be a half-breed to survive these battles.
“Most of these local players had a tough education. They are made for the fight. People are down to earth and local players see rugby as a battle. There is no fear about them. They fly with each other in games.
“The games are played at a slower pace, with less ball in play than we see in the Currie Cup or Super Rugby. There is a great emphasis in the contest on set pieces and breakdowns, as is the case in other parts of Europe ”.
Engels reiterates that moving to Russia will become a more attractive option as opportunities in South Africa dry up. ‘Japan is full, they cannot accept more players. Many players are trying to get into the second and third division in France, but there are also limitations there, ”he says.
“The South Africans can give Russia a chance as the environment adapts to their natural playing style and mentality. Players who are not at the top echelon may see this as an opportunity to get back on the map.
“Some players are aiming for qualification for the Russian national team over the next five years. When you can’t play for the Boks, you look for other opportunities in international rugby, ”he adds. ‘The same thing happened to me, when I played 15 Tests with Namibia [between 2013 and 2015].
EASTERN EXODUS
More than 60 South Africans are spread across the clubs in Russia. The numbers will increase as the recruiting drive gathers momentum and more and more players realize the benefits of heading east.
Former Bok winger Bjorn Basson played for Enisei-STM last season. No. 8 Blitzbok and Pumas Carel du Preez, Valke Friedle Olivier flank and Bulls wing Earll Dowrie are among the foreign contingent at the Siberia-based club.
Strela-Agro’s South African Legion has risen to eight with the arrival of former Blitzbok Donovan du Randt and others. Kings mainstay Martin Dreyer is part of an equally sizable group in Slava Moscow.
Former Kings scrum-half Leighton Eksteen becomes the VVA Saracens, while former EP Oliver Zono does his trade with Krasny Yar. Ulrich Beyers, a former SA U20 and Bulls fullback, was recently signed by the Vladivostok Tigers.
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