KURT-LEE CARRIES CHESTER’S TORCH

BY JOHN GOLIATH

THE SPIRIT OF CHESTER WILLIAMS LIVES ON IN SPRINGBOK STAR KURT-LEE ARENDSE.

THE 80,000-SEAT STADE DE FRANCE IN PARIS, where the Springboks lifted their historic fourth World Cup, is a far cry from the thorny field where their star wing, Kurt-Lee Arendse, started his extraordinary rugby journey.

ARENDSE GREW UP in the impoverished Lantana neighbourhood in Paarl and attended Paulus Joubert Secondary. The school doesn’t have the state-ofthe-art facilities and manicured fields of the former Model C schools on the other side of the Berg River.

“WE USED TO CALL OUR SCHOOL’S FIELD ‘THORN BAY’ because of all the thorns on it,” says Athol Ontong, Arendse’s rugby master at the school. “We often joke that he learned to do his magical sidesteps to avoid the thorns.”

But “Thorn Bay” is where Arendse’s talents were discovered, and the rough diamond was soon polished by an iconic Springbok who grew up not far from Arendse’s family home.

THE LATE CHESTER WILLIAMS, the first black man to play for the postapartheid Springboks and a World Cup winner in 1995, was blown away by Arendse’s showing for the Boland Academy side during one of SA Rugby’s youth weeks.

Williams immediately offered Arendse the opportunity to play for the University of the Western Cape (UWC) in the Varsity Shield.

“In 2014, Kurt-Lee was chosen to play for the Boland Academy team where he was seen as the standout backline player at the tournament,” says Ontong. “Chester obviously saw his potential and decided to sign him up.”

UWC’S DIRECTOR OF SPORT, Mandla Gagayi, remembers how Williams, who passed away shortly before the 2019 Rugby World Cup, took the starlet under his wing.

“Chester kept on telling me about one of his biggest recruits and urging me to go to training to meet the student,” says Gagayi.

“When I got to training, Kurt-Lee was watching from the sidelines because he didn’t have boots. Chester bought him a new pair for the next training session and his showing convinced me that he was a star.”

ONTONG REPEATEDLY REFERS TO ARENDSE AS A HUMBLE BOY who respected his teachers and never got into trouble; a softspoken, shy teenager who just wanted to work hard.

Williams had a similar personality – he was the politest person you could wish to meet, but fierce in his beliefs and principles. Arendse embodies that same spirit, as spectators saw in the World Cup final when he made a try-saving tackle on All Blacks centre Rieko Ioane, who is about 25kg heavier than him.

“HE WAS ONE OF THE MOST HUMBLE FIRSTYEAR STUDENTS, with sincere respect for the leadership. He never demanded anything but was always appreciative of whatever he got,” says Gagayi.

“Chester and Kurt-Lee had a very close relationship. Chester used to tell me that Kurt-Lee reminded him of his own humble beginnings, and that is what pushed Chessie to always keep him close.”

AFTER A FEW TOP PERFORMANCES FOR UWC, Arendse was selected to play for the Blitzboks. From there, Jake White signed him for the Bulls during the Covid-19 pandemic, and in 2022 he made his debut for the Springboks against Wales in Bloemfontein.

“Even when Kurt-Lee received his Blitzbok contract he took it to Chester for advice,” says Gagayi. “I believe that every match Kurt-Lee plays he plays it for Chessie because he knows how much Chester believed in him, even when he didn’t believe in himself.”