SARU applauds Tsogo Sun's community initiative

"Our national Springbok team can only ever be as strong as its nursery - and the nursery starts in every school where rugby is played. If rugby is not happening at school level, there cannot be the great success we all expect to see at national team level."

Alexander was speaking at Tsogo Sun's second SunCares Sports Academy rugby festival for schools which recently took place in Diepsloot near Johannesburg. "The South African Rugby Union applauds companies such as Tsogo Sun that are collaborating with government departments and other organisations to make a real difference in developing rugby at grass roots level. It is good for the country, it is good for rugby and more than that, it is good for the children, who are kept active and can enjoy all the benefits of participating in a team sport."

Developing a passion for rugby

The Tsogo Sun SunCares Sports Academy rugby programme is one of the group's corporate social investment initiatives, operating with extensive collaborations that include Golden Lions Rugby Union, Gauteng Department of Education and the Department of Sports and Recreation.

"Before the SunCares programme, no rugby had been played in any of the Diepsloot schools - now the youngsters are developing a passion for it and are keen to put in the hard work and the practice necessary to advance in the game," says Glenn Joseph, general manager of Montecasino, a primary sponsor of the rugby programme.

Alexander says that many of SARU's top players started playing rugby at schools located in far-flung rural areas, and then played for their own communities before joining the higher ranks at provincial or even national rugby level. SARU is actively busy in the 53 districts of the country, reaching communities where rugby has not traditionally been played.

Collaborative programmes are needed

"It's extremely important for the development continuum of the game of rugby in South Africa to introduce rugby to communities throughout the country." At the same time, Alexander notes that it is impossible for SARU to reach all the communities throughout the districts of South Africa alone. It's imperative for the private and public sector to get involved through collaborative programmes.

Rob Collins, chief marketing officer of Tsogo Sun, says that through SunCares, the group is striving to harness the power of collaborations in the interests of doing more - and doing what it does well. Tsogo Sun believes that collaborations and partnerships are an excellent model for development as they tend to deliver much more than would have otherwise been possible. "Collaborations with corporates, government, SMMEs, or even individual trailblazers, offer the perfect opportunity to pool resources with like-minded organisations and work together for collective change, sharing the kudos that is earned."

Each partner in the collaboration has a different skill to bring to the table.