Book description
It's in the early morning, usually on dry, icy cold, thorn-strewn
fields, that rugby legends are created. The boys are kaalvoet, the
linesmen are spectators, sometimes unwillingly plucked from the
makeshift stands, and the aroma of boerewors on hot coals drifts across
the field. It is here that the love for the game of rugby is born, where
passion is first ignited.
Between the Lines
is a journey to the heart of South Africa's rugby spirit. Join Matthew
Knight as he travels from Bishops in Cape Town - the birthplace of rugby
in South Africa - to the hallowed corridors of Hilton College and
Michaelhouse in KwaZulu-Natal, to dusty platteland dorps where Bok
greats such as Os du Randt were nurtured, and Grey College in
Bloemfontein, the undisputed nursery for future Springboks. Knight
meticulously mines South Africa's rich rugby heritage and interviews
some of the former and current greats of the game. Characters such as
Schalk Burger Snr and son, 'Skonk' Nicholson (South Africa's
longest-serving coach), Mark Andrews and Nick Mallett, among many
others, share their memories of the game that has left an indelible
impression on their lives, as well as the lives of those who cheered
them on from the stands. This is Knight's quest to discover the
foundation of Springbok success: schools' rugby.
