Rugby: Captain emerges from the pack

By GAVIN RICH

CAPE TOWN - Andre Vos has emerged from the shadows of relative obscurity to claim the top onfield job in South African rugby.

The ninth Springbok captain of the post-isolation era, Vos has always had leadership pedigree.

His selection to lead the South African under-21s in 1996 and the Emerging Bok team against Wales in 1998 indicated that he was a man earmarked for a prominent role in future national teams.

Yet, unlike some of his more glamorous, high-profile contemporaries, it somehow seemed that the 25-year-old commerce graduate from Port Elizabeth would have greatness thrust upon him later rather than sooner.

It was not that Vos lacked talent, for he had that in abundance, but that he happened to play in a position where South Africa had an excess of promising players.

The race for back-row spots in the national team has developed into a dog-fight in recent years, and the attrition rate has been high. As recently as the start of the 1997 season, Natal's Wayne Fyvie was considered to be South Africa's captain-in-waiting.

Since then, Corne Krige and Bob Skinstad have been other loose forwards filling the role of heir to the incumbent Bok skipper, with Skinstad's brilliant leadership of the Stormers last year stamping him as the favourite to succeed Gary Teichmann.

Skinstad lost out when he was injured in a car accident on a wet Sunday evening 15 months ago. Krige then took up pole position when he led South Africa to their record 101-0 drubbing of Italy on his test debut last June.

But when Teichmann eventually made way, first through injury after the loss to the All Blacks in Dunedin last July, and then through coach Nick Mallett's judgment, Krige had been knocked out of contention with a career-threatening injury.

Joost van der Westhuizen was appointed as Teichmann's replacement and he led the country at the World Cup. He gave up the position a couple of months ago on the basis that his own serious injury and off-season operation prevented him from being an automatic first choice.

Ironically, it was Vos who came on to replace Krige at openside flanker after the Western Province and Stormers player had been helped from the field with a tendon injury in the early stages of what became a record loss at Carisbrook.

Vos chose the right moment to prove his credentials. He was one of the few South Africans to leave New Zealand with any credit.

His showing had a deep impact on the South African management committee, but, like Krige, misfortune was to strike him before he could consolidate his position in the next Tri-Nations match against Australia in Brisbane the following week. He was forced to withdraw the evening before the game.

Vos had been particularly eager to play in the match after representing the Queensland Reds with distinction in 1998.

The fact that Vos, who became the youngest Currie Cup captain when he led Eastern Province when he was barely 21, had to go overseas to prove himself, said more about the surfeit of talent available than his own ability.

It was not until the playoff match against New Zealand at the end of the World Cup that he got his chance at No 8 in the first-choice team.

And what a performance he turned in. Having a genuine No 8 at the back of the scrum made all the difference to the Boks, who won with Vos playing a stormer.

His elevation to the captaincy is confirmation that he has used the Super 12 as the platform to prove that he is South Africa's top No 8.

Vos has been helped by being part of an outstanding Cats loose forward unit. Although his team went down 5-28 against the Brumbies in the semifinals of the Super 12, he was always prominent in a brave Cats performance as they improved considerably on the 0-64 drubbing received at the hands of the same opponents on April Fool's Day.

Although he is not the Cats captain - Rassie Erasmus holds that position - Vos has proven a popular choice among the players. He is an intelligent, respected but relatively soft spoken and humble. Now that he has won the battle to make the No 8 spot his own, he could be in for a long term as captain.