Back to school for Saracens stars
Schalk Brits will be watched on Sunday by his old Paul Roos Gymnasium schoolmasters
Guinness Premiership Player of the Year nominees Schalk Brits and Ernst Joubert - both of whom are South Africans - cannot wait for Sunday's Guinness Premiership semifinal at Northampton Saints, especially as the Saracens duo will be playing in front of the two men who launched their rugby careers.
Hooker Brits and No.8 Joubert were both educated at Paul Roos Gymnasium (who are currently ranked eighth in the popular FNB Schools Top 20), and former teachers Frans van Niekerk and Jacques Hanekom have flown from South Africa to attend the match.
"It's difficult to explain what Frans and Jacques mean to me," said Brits - a Springbok in 2008, "I have so much to thank them for.
"I was a boarder at Paul Roos and they basically both became my second dads, helping me not just with my rugby, but also just always being there to talk," he added.
"This relationship has continued beyond school, and I chatted to them before I joined Saracens about leaving South Africa and they definitely gave me the right advice.
"They really gave me the confidence to move into professional rugby and it has fantastic to know they will be in the stands on Sunday."
Brits and Joubert aside, the connections between Saracens and Paul Roos could hardly be greater - old boys include current Sarries scrum coach Cobus Visagie, shareholder Johann Rupert and Director Jannie Durand.
Joubert - who used to play for the Golden Lions, before moving to the United Kingdom - said: "I still remember a conversation in the grandstand with Jacques when I first went to the school, telling me how one day I could play professional rugby.
"When I first went to the school, I could only dream of rugby as a career; it was the support of Jacques and Frans that turned my dream into a reality.
"They started as coaches, but they have became great friends and mentors, and I hope we can do them proud and get the result at Franklin's Gardens on Sunday."
Sunday's Guinness Premiership semifinal, between Saracens and home side Northampton, will get underway at 2.30pm (SA time). The match will be televised live on SuperSport Five.
