Wealthy old boys scrum down for school pride

12 February 2017 - 02:00 By MATTHEW SAVIDES
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An extensive network of uber-rich former pupils is funding Hilton College's "poaching" of talented rugby players from Gauteng schools.

Accusations of clandestine recruitment, which involves offering over-the-odds bursaries to top players, have long plagued schoolboy rugby - and now the country's most expensive school has been dragged into the fray.

At the end of November, the heads of 11 Gauteng boys' schools wrote to Hilton - where fees top R250,000 a year - telling it to back off and stop taking their players.

While the school heads refused to provide the Sunday Times with a copy of the letter, they confirmed that it had been sent following a number of incidents involving Hilton.

King Edward VII, St John's College, St Stithians, Jeppe, Parktown Boys and Pretoria Boys are among the schools represented at the November meeting. The schools discussed the matter this week after SchoolboyRugby blog published details of the letter.

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The letter comes just two years after Hilton's former headmaster, Peter Ducasse, said the school would no longer play against Durban rival Glenwood High over its "recent strategy" of player recruitment. Earlier in that season, Hilton First XV lost 67-7 to Glenwood.

Several of the Gauteng principals or sports heads, speaking on condition of anonymity, called out Hilton over this hypocrisy.

"If you live in a glass house, you shouldn't throw stones," one sports head said.

King Edward VII principal David Lovatt said: "The matter was raised by a number of schools who had been affected. It was agreed that a letter should be drafted and sent to Hilton College to ask them to desist from the practice of poaching."

He said that no specific player transfers were discussed at the meeting, rather the "general" practice.

Another principal said: "I made my statement [at the meeting] and my statement was clear that I took the stance that I did. Our intention was never for it [the letter] to get out. Our intention was for a specific school over specific practices."

A joint statement from the schools, sent on Friday morning, said the letter was "collegial in tone, and sought to address a concern. We look forward to further collegial discussions between us and the new [Hilton] headmaster."

Schoolboy rugby insiders told the Sunday Times this week that Hilton's recruitment of top players and coaches - and not just in rugby - had been more recent, particularly over the past three years. It has apparently been funded by a group of rich former pupils.

The rugby team is coached by former Sharks player and assistant coach Brad MacLeod-Henderson, and former Dolphins captain Dale Benkenstein heads up cricket coaching.

Two former pupils said one of the biggest contributors was Andrew Dunn, a rugby-playing Old Boy who is now CEO of Richmark Holdings.

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Dunn confirmed that he, "with numerous other benefactors", had bought into Hilton's 2015 vision to become "the No1 or 2 independent school on the continent, measured on academic results first and foremost, as well as arts and culture, and in the four core sports, cricket, water polo, rugby and hockey".

He said: "I am sure you are aware that most schools and universities rely heavily on various forms of benefaction, and it is both an honour and privilege for us to be in a position to contribute to this wonderful establishment."

George Harris, Hilton's new headmaster, said the issue was "private" but confirmed that the claims of poaching were being investigated. The school refused to answer specific questions about the nature of the Old Boys' role in the recruitment of players and coaches.

Questions sent to the official Old Boys' club were not responded to.

Tinus Diedericks, chairman of the Golden Lions High Schools Rugby Association, said poaching was rife, and that Hilton was a newcomer to the practice.

"Everyone around them is achieving. Glenwood, Michaelhouse. That's the reason they buy. They want to improve their results. They want to improve their, let's call it, visibility. That's absolutely what it is."

He said poaching was so common that schools taking part in a regional tournament have had to sign no-objection certificates if players were to move between them.

"We've had cases where a player would play league at a particular school, their school would fall out [of the tournament] and their parents would want their kid to be at a winning school. So they would move the child from school A to school B in the July holiday. That is stuff that happens. It's there," he said.

Diedericks added: "It's rife. Nine times out of 10 it's not the kids, it's the parents. They are chasing dreams for their kids. We've had instances of kids moving five times in their high school career."

savidesm@sundaytimes.co.za

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