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Kimberley – Budgetary constraints, rather than the Blue Bulls, Western Province or even the Free State Cheetahs, are Griquas’ biggest obstacle in their bid to win the Currie Cup.
If Griquas’ budget for 2010 is taken into consideration, they are actually performing remarkably well in this year’s tournament, says union president Hennie van der Merwe.
He was reacting after numerous players’ agents had contacted Sport24. It has come to light that only a specific group of players will be contracted for next year, meaning that some players will be on match fees alone, which could lead to a player exodus.
“From next year we want to focus on the Currie Cup rather than the Vodacom Cup,” said Van der Merwe.
Griquas are sixth on the log and still have an outside chance of making the semifinals.
With a budget that is even smaller than some of the country’s top club sides, it’s understandable why relatively inexperienced and unknown players are asked to step in for injured players.
The coaching staff struggled along on a budget of about R7-million this year - very small in comparison to the budgets of the likes of the Blue Bulls and Western Province.
Directors of the Griqualand West Rugby Union met last Friday to discuss the union’s financial plight.
“Our budget for players does not come close to that of the Bulls or WP. We have to accept that being based here (in Kimberley) means that we will never have an astronomical budget. It’s not easy to compete under such circumstances. The coaches deserve a lot of credit,” said Van der Merwe.
Griquas don’t even have a contracted team doctor, meaning that a player injured on the field usually only knows three days later what the extent of his injury is. Players at bigger unions are quickly sent for evaluation and a clear picture generally emerges 24 hours after the game.
“We don’t have a contracted team doctor. It’s a big problem and one that I would like to solve personally. We want to appoint a team doctor and a physiotherapist as soon as possible,” said Van der Merwe.
Griquas mostly use buses to get to away games as plane tickets are simply too expensive, which means that players spend close on eight hours on the road before playing against the Sharks in Durban.
“Like other unions we try to cut costs where we can. We would have travelled to Durban by air, but the travel agency botched the arrangements,” said Van der Merwe.
“Big companies don’t want to get involved with rugby anymore. Look at how Vodacom decided not to sponsor the Cheetahs in future. We spoke at the meeting and there are a number of plans on the table to get more money. We are working at bringing more money into Griquas.”
Kimberley – Budgetary constraints, rather than the Blue Bulls, Western Province or even the Free State Cheetahs, are Griquas’ biggest obstacle in their bid to win the Currie Cup.
If Griquas’ budget for 2010 is taken into consideration, they are actually performing remarkably well in this year’s tournament, says union president Hennie van der Merwe.
He was reacting after numerous players’ agents had contacted Sport24. It has come to light that only a specific group of players will be contracted for next year, meaning that some players will be on match fees alone, which could lead to a player exodus.
“From next year we want to focus on the Currie Cup rather than the Vodacom Cup,” said Van der Merwe.
Griquas are sixth on the log and still have an outside chance of making the semifinals.
With a budget that is even smaller than some of the country’s top club sides, it’s understandable why relatively inexperienced and unknown players are asked to step in for injured players.
The coaching staff struggled along on a budget of about R7-million this year - very small in comparison to the budgets of the likes of the Blue Bulls and Western Province.
Directors of the Griqualand West Rugby Union met last Friday to discuss the union’s financial plight.
“Our budget for players does not come close to that of the Bulls or WP. We have to accept that being based here (in Kimberley) means that we will never have an astronomical budget. It’s not easy to compete under such circumstances. The coaches deserve a lot of credit,” said Van der Merwe.
Griquas don’t even have a contracted team doctor, meaning that a player injured on the field usually only knows three days later what the extent of his injury is. Players at bigger unions are quickly sent for evaluation and a clear picture generally emerges 24 hours after the game.
“We don’t have a contracted team doctor. It’s a big problem and one that I would like to solve personally. We want to appoint a team doctor and a physiotherapist as soon as possible,” said Van der Merwe.
Griquas mostly use buses to get to away games as plane tickets are simply too expensive, which means that players spend close on eight hours on the road before playing against the Sharks in Durban.
“Like other unions we try to cut costs where we can. We would have travelled to Durban by air, but the travel agency botched the arrangements,” said Van der Merwe.
“Big companies don’t want to get involved with rugby anymore. Look at how Vodacom decided not to sponsor the Cheetahs in future. We spoke at the meeting and there are a number of plans on the table to get more money. We are working at bringing more money into Griquas.”
