Many thanks to Andrew Campbell from Skolerugby SA for this great article!
2021 was definitely not kind to South African schoolboy rugby players, or their parents. Predominantly thanks to that little pandemic everyone’s talking about. And whereas stadiums should’ve been filled with the kind of waves that have become synonymous with sporting events, they were empty thanks to different types of waves that forced the government to put a stop to all school sport just as it got underway again.
Social media was awash with pictures of South African parents making a plan. Bakkies were pulled up next to school grounds with umbrellas and cooler boxes on the back as parents tried to catch whatever glimpse they could get on the action. New friends were made in the process and generally speaking, people found the humour in the situation. But, the fact remains, kids played in front of empty stadiums and parents could not watch their 7-year old’s first barefoot game or their son’s first game for his high school… or even worse, a son’s first (or last) game for his school’s 1st team. Sure, some games were live streamed, but not every school had the financial means to make this a viable option for the parents and supporters of schoolboy rugby. And in a few cases, it caused more frustration than initially accepting the fact that Covid had performed a high tackle on many hopes and aspirations.
Enter photographers. Well, we say “enter,” because even that was a challenge. With schools having to account for the number of people in attendance at a game, not even this was a guarantee. But those who could, played a vital part in trying to capture some of the action as possibly the only memory the boys or the parents would have after a year where some schools managed to play maybe 2 or 3 games and some were left wanting. That’s why Skolerugby SA, NextGenXV’s partner in The Talent Hub, decided to launch a campaign running during December 2021 where schoolboy rugby photographers were invited to share their own favourite pictures they managed to take in 2021. This was done as a way of giving recognition to the photographers – whether they were professional photographers or pupils from the school itself – for going out of their way to try and capture these moments for the boys and their parents.
The response has been incredible with even well-known schoolboy rugby photographers like Frans Lombard, Johan Orton, Charmaine Sander, Martin Ashworth, Riaan de Bruyn, Eric Waterson, Craig Gissing and Martyn Mulder all selecting their favourite pics from the year. Apart from them, Skolerugby SA also received interest from photographers who are still at school, parents and people who humbly said that this was not their main profession. Mission accomplished. It wasn’t about who took the best picture. It was about saying thanks and sharing some of the pics taken throughout the year, whether they were of a fast fly-half who was about to be signed by a union or an under 14 boy who still had to grow into his rugby shorts. The message was simple: Thanks for taking pics of moments that played out with no spectators cheering on the next move!
Here are some of the photographers’ favourite pics they took in 2021, selected by themselves.
