The elite South African schools churning out world-class rugby and cricket players

At King Edward VII School in Johannesburg, one item is prized above all else: a red blazer with white stripes. This denotes that a boy has received full sports colours – setting them on the path to join the school’s illustrious list of Springboks rugby players and South Africa international cricketers.

“Wearing the red blazer is a big thing – it is a very prestigious award,” says Eugene Marx, the sports director of King Edward VII. “If people talk, they talk about the school rugby team.”

One boy who used to wear the blazer, Quinton de Kock, looms as England’s greatest threat in the first half of the England-South Africa World Cup double-header on Saturday. Another alumnus, Malcolm Marx (no relation of Eugene), would have lined up as hooker against England in Paris but for his knee injury.

De Kock and Marx are part of a rarefied club. Twenty-four King Edward VII old boys have played cricket for South Africa; another five have played rugby. When England meet South Africa in the two World Cup games, they will not so much be confronting a nation as a school system.

In a country of 6,000 secondary schools, around 40 have produced the majority of Proteas cricketers since readmission, calculates the South African sports scientist Habib Noorbhai. Springboks are believed to come from a similarly small number, with the same schools specialising in producing both cricketers and rugby players.

“Sport is a glue that binds our school community and unites us,” says John Duncan, the director of sport at Glenwood High School. Glenwood boasts players in both South Africa’s Cricket and Rugby World Cup squads – Andile Phehlukwayo and Jaden Hendrikse. “We believe in developing the ‘whole boy’ through a holistic education and sport is a vital facet of what we do.”

Leading South African schools tend to be among the very oldest in the country, often dating back to the mid-to-late 19th century; they have retained their emphasis upon Christianity, discipline and sport ever since. Most leading producers of World Cup talent are all-boys schools. These are divided between private schools and so-called ‘Model C’ schools – like King Edward VII School – which were open to white children only under apartheid and have since transformed. Though Model C schools are classed as government schools they charge fees.

Each rugby season culminates in ‘interschools’: a series of high-octane games that can attract crowds of more than 10,000. SuperSport broadcasts some interschool rugby games.

Grey College, in Bloemfontein, which was founded in 1855, has produced a record 46 Springboks. One of these, Cobus Reinach, will line up at scrum-half against England. Grey College boys have been a common thread in South Africa’s three Rugby World Cup victories; the Proteas’ first two Test captains after readmission, Kepler Wessels and Hansie Cronje, also went here.

“The history most certainly inspires boys to be their best,” says Bobby Joubert, the director of rugby. “There is a spirit of greatness that hovers around the school.”

Extraordinary facilities help. Grey College has 18 turf nets and six indoor cricket lanes; along the rugby pitches, there are also tennis courts, hockey pitches, an outstanding gym and swimming pool. Rugby players at Grey spend around 20 hours a week either playing, training or doing strength and conditioning work; there is even video analysis.

If representing the Springboks is the dream of most boys who go to elite schools – especially Afrikaans ones – rugby’s cultural dominance does not come at the expense of playing other sports.

Specialising later in sport, no earlier than a child’s mid-teens, has been demonstrated to improve their prospects of later becoming professional athletes. Playing a range of sports helps motor development, reduces the risks of overuse injuries, boosts athleticism and gives a child the best chance of picking the sport for which they are genuinely best suited.

“Most kids who go to school play a lot of sports,” observes the cricket great Shaun Pollock. He attended Northwood School – alma mater of Keshav Maharaj, who England will face in Mumbai. “You play everything, rugby, cricket, hockey, soccer. So they do become quite athletic.”

Elite schools do not just see their role as developing talent; it is also to ensure that boys who couldn’t afford the fees can still have access. They effectively double as sports academies.

Springboks captain Siya Kolisi was spotted playing in an U-12 tournament, and then offered a scholarship at Grey Junior, paving the way for his rugby scholarship to Grey High School. At the time, Kolisi spoke only a few words of English. “Just seeing the building just changed my whole mindset and I believed I could be whatever I want to be,” Kolisi said.

As well as a desire to help those in need, scholarships are also driven by the need to win. “Rugby is the marketing tool for schools,” Joubert explains. The most talented 13-year-old athletes in Johannesburg often have three or more scholarship offers from different schools.

“I don’t want to say buy players – but recruit players,” Marx says.

Schoolboy talent has not only served South Africa. England 2003 World Cup winner Mike Catt went to Grey High School, Kolisi’s old school. Robin Smith (Northwood School), Kevin Pietersen (Maritzburg College) and Keaton Jennings (King Edward VII) all represented England’s cricket team.

On Saturday, Dawid Malan, England’s leading run-scorer this World Cup, will line up against South Africa. A few hours later, tighthead prop Frans Malherbe, a fellow Paarl Boys’ High School old boy, will take the field for South Africa.

Malan likens school sport to college sports in the United States. “It becomes the be-all and end-all that’s your sort of ticket into making it,” he reflects.

During his last years at Paarl, representing the school second team in rugby – he played inside centre – and first team in cricket, Malan got into the gym at 5am during the rugby off-season, and then played cricket in the afternoon. He considers the environment ideal preparation for a career in professional sport. “From gym work to training, everything was done to gear up for you to be as good as you could possibly be.”

Some believe that sport is too great a focus in South African school life. “The nature of sport in our country can be a little bit all-consuming to be totally honest,” Pollock observes.

“In South Africa, in schools across the board, it’s about how good your first rugby team is,” Marx reflects. “It’s not always the right way of looking at things.”

But, should South Africa secure a World Cup double on Saturday, it is only England who will be complaining.