In the years leading up to South Africa’s fully inclusive democratic election in 1994, many of my colleagues, particularly those who had been forced by various circumstances to leave Zim-bah-bweh, chose to take their families to countries like Australia, New Zealand, Canada, or the United Kingdom.
At the heart of those decisions lay a fundamental conviction that South Africa would eventually become a failed state like Zim-bah-bweh.
I believed wholeheartedly that they were wrong, and nothing convinced me more of the certainty of a world-leading South Africa than the day the entire country turned out to stand in long queues in the blazing sun to cast their votes for a new South Africa in 1994.
And then came the Rugby World Cup! On 24 June 1995 we awoke to the dawn of what was to be the most amazing sporting day of my life.
Professionally, we were already riding high on the wave of business success, having grown our company’s market share to over eighty per cent to become the industry leader in every respect.
Our marketing department arranged to take some of our many clients to numerous events like cricket and soccer internationals, the Durban July and the Cape Met, as well as maintaining corporate suites in Cape Town, Durban, and Johannesburg rugby stadiums, where we were able to entertain clients to the World Cup spectacle. I was privileged to attend three of the Springbok games in that tournament.
On 25 May we were in Cape Town to watch the opening game against Australia, where the Bokke started their campaign with a 27, 18 win at Newlands, the stadium my father had introduced me to rugby in my early years.
On 17 June, South Africa ‘swam’ their way to victory in Durban over France, 19, 15, in a downpour the likes of which I had never witnessed on a field. Slipping and sliding everywhere in a game that could have gone either way.
By then rugby fever had gripped the entire country. Millions of people of every colour and creed, a great many of whom had never followed the game before, followed the Springboks, game after game with growing enthusiasm, and they turned out in their thousands to cheer the team on as it made its way around the country in a special, open-top, double-decker, bus. Our imagination was truly captured by the fairy tale that was busy unfolding, week after week, before our eyes.
And so, on that memorable day of the final, we all gathered at our Sandton head office and travelled together by coach to Ellis Park.
It was the first major sporting event that South Africa had hosted since the end of Apartheid and it was the first time that all of the World Cup matches were being played in one country. It was also the last time it would take place in an amateur capacity.
We sat at the top of the South Stand, a couple suites in from the West wing, looking down the length of the field. Sixty-five thousand spectators filled the stadium, and the noise of the collective excitement made it short of impossible to converse with the person next to you.
The afternoon dragged on as we awaited the arrival of the teams and then, without warning, we heard a roar that continued to crescendo behind and above. We felt the stadium tremble.
All of a sudden, the nose of a massive South African Airways Boeing 747 appeared directly above us, and so close that it seemed like we could touch the undercarriage with outstretched arms. As it flew across the field ahead of us, the roar continued to penetrate deep down to the ground below and we could see the words ‘Good Luck Bokke’ stencilled on the underside of its wings. It was a once in a lifetime multi-sensory experience that nobody present would ever forget.
This was a time when SAA was a world renowned airline, and it proudly gave its support by affording Captain Laurie Kay, Senior First Officer Billy Fourie, Senior Flight Engineer Don Coppard, and Senior Training Captain Selwyn Thomas the opportunity to secretly prepare for weeks to execute the first such fly-past ever attempted on the international stage.
Francois Pienaar, the Springbok captain said of the occasion: The atmosphere at the 1995 World Cup was nothing short of electric; it was an amazing place, it was the sense of anticipation of a country coming together.
The two teams took to the field and stood in line facing the grandstand to sing their respective national anthems in front of the crowd.
And then came that iconic moment when Nelson Mandela walked out onto the field wearing the number 6 Springbok jersey, the captain’s jersey, and proceeded to shake hands with all the New Zealand and South African players and officials. At this point the entire stadium began to chant Nel-son! Nel-son! Nel-son! It was a spontaneous show of support and recognition of the magnitude of everything that the great man had been ableto achieve in bringing a fractured nation together.
As South Africa’s new national anthem, Nkosi Sikelel’ Afrika commenced, 65,000 voices were raised to the heavens in unison. The ground reverberated with our heart-rendering anthem and was transported across the length and breadth of the world.
It was a tight final, with both sides playing at the peak of their capabilities. There were many moments of hysterical glee and many moments of shattering anguish. New Zealand repeatedly and fiercely attacked their opponents and the Bokke found themselves defending over and over again.
Andrew Mehrtens scored a penalty six minutes into the game giving New Zealand a 3, 0 lead. This was followed by a penalty by Joel Stransky that put South Africa on the scoreboard five minutes later. Penalties followed from one side to the other until the 32nd minute when Joel kicked a drop goal to give South Africa a 9, 6 lead at half-time.
The All Blacks responded shortly into the second half with a drop goal by Mehrtens to level the score at 9, 9. At the final whistle the teams were still drawn. There had to be a winner. Anxious moments permeated the stands. In the stadium and across the entire country, in every home, pub, shebeen, and club, hearts stood still.
The sides had to go into extra time lasting fifteen minutes each way, again a first in World Cup rugby. Once again, both teams took us to the edge of our seats time and time again.
And then, in Joel Stransky’s own words.
Going into the extra-time there was a feeling that nothing could stop us now. With seven minutes to go we had a scrum on the right-hand side, fifteen metres from the touchline, and Francois called a backrow move. I just saw where [Graeme] Bachop was lined up. He was really focused on Joost [van der Westhuizen] as Joost put the ball in, and Andrew Mehrtens was standing really wide. So, I shouted to Joost to cancel the move and pass to me instead. It wasn’t a long kick, it was almost smack bang in front. Bachop actually tried to block the pass, which meant there was no pressure coming from the inside, and I just had this big channel to kick it through. If I look back, I would love to have kicked every ball as well I kicked that one.
We all rose in unison, to our feet in time with the ball as it climbed up and between the posts on the far end of the field.
The final whistle took forever to come. South Africa 15 New Zealand 12.
The entire nation screamed and jumped for joy. We had won! We had won! We were unable to contain ourselves for a long time, and it was only once the teams had assembled on the pitch for the prize-giving did the crowd start to calm down.
Once again, the President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela, walked onto the field, this time to hand over the prestigious Webb Ellis Cup to Francois Pienaar and his Springbok team. As they shook hands over the exchange, Madiba and Francois both spoke, almost in unison.
Francois, thank you for what you’ve done for this country.
Mr President, thank you for what you’ve done for this country.
With the handing over of world rugby’s most prestigious trophy, the stands erupted into a spontaneous standing ovation. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end, the tears of emotion both for the win as much as for the gesture of unification for a country that had come so far in such a short time, was just indescribable.
It was a day that will remain with me forever as singularly the greatest sporting experience of our time and a lesson in leadership never again repeated to this day.