Sarfu to honour its heroes of yesteryear

JOHANNESBURG -- The South African Rugby Football Union (Sarfu) will honour the rugby heroes of yesteryear in its 'Yesterday's Heroes' campaign, which was officially launched here yesterday.

'Yesterday's Heroes' gives recognition to former national players from the pre-unity administrative bodies for their contribution to the game and its history.

The campaign is the affirmation of a decision taken by Sarfu at its formation after unity in 1991/92.

The highlight of the campaign will be the 'Yesterday's Heroes' banquet which will be held in Sandton on October 30 at which the SA Rugby Player of the Year for 2000 will be named.

As many former players as can be assembled will be in attendance, sporting new Springbok blazers and ties, which would have been presented to them at a series of regio-nal ceremonies in mid-October.

"When Sarfu was founded in 1991/92, it was decided that players from the former SA Rugby Board, SA Rugby Union, SA Rugby Football Federation and SA Rugby Association, who earned national colours prior to Unity, should, as a sign of recognition, be awarded the national colours of the new Sarfu," said Sarfu president, Silas Nkanunu, who was a key figure in the unity negotiations.

"The project, therefore, is built on a foundation of reconciliation.

"It aims to unite the heroes of the past behind Sarfu and the Springbok emblem in the new millennium.

''In so doing, these past heroes will challenge the new generation to make rugby their sport of choice," Nkanunu said.

The players featured in the campaign all had a hand in shaping the game of rugby at various levels over the past century.

For Sarfu, it is important that former national players from the pre-unity bodies are known to rugby's new generation of supporters.

"Each individual character can positively influence a particular community and play a part in broadening rugby's support and participant base," said Sarfu CEO, Rian Oberholzer.

"This has been identified as a key success factor in making rugby a truly national sport. By honouring these former players, Sarfu will be closing the chapter on the past and opening a fresh chapter for the new millennium.

"While there is nothing that Sarfu can do alter rugby's past, there is an important role that past players from all walks of life can play in determining its future.

''This is a future in which Sarfu's goal to make rugby a national sport, representative of all legitimate stakeholders, will be furthered," Oberholzer said.

'Yesterday's Heroes' focuses on the heritage component of a new three-year Sarfu marketing and communications strategy that goes under the banner of 'Make It Your Game'.

The 'Yesterday's Heroes' campaign will include more than 160 outdoor billboards, strategically placed at locations countrywide and featuring a cross section of former national players relevant to a particular area.

This will be supported in print by two newspaper inserts and a special collectors' edition of the official Sarfu magazine, Champs! 100 Years of South African Rugby.

The banquet is backed by a core group of sponsors -- including Nike, South African Breweries, ABSA and Bankfin.

The banquet will be the first step in the formation of a past players club and the creation of an SA Rugby Hall of Fame, which will serve as a monument to all who have contributed to the history of rugby in South Africa.

In the next two years, this heritage component of the 'Make it Your Game' campaign will include the publishing of a book documenting the definitive history of South African rugby. -- Sapa