Twenty two of the most senior coaches, amongst then Currie Cup and Super 14 winning coach, Frans Ludeke, and Vodacom Cup winning coach, Nico Serfontein, were introduced to the program, aimed at making the game safer and more sustainable.

Serfontein was full of praise for the presentation from Johan Zurich and Pote Fourie and endorsed the message they had to the top class coaching structure at the Blue Bulls.

“I was impressed. The reality is that rugby needs to become as safe as it can be. We are in competition with other sporting codes and the better our safety records, the better chance we have to retain players and introduce new ones to our wonderful game,” Serfontein said.

“I was also struck by the message that we all have a responsibility to grow the game, even the spectator. They have to respect referees, for example, and stay away from incidents that can create a negative perception of the game. If we all act positively to grow the game, rugby will prosper for a long time.”

Serfontein urged coaches and referees who have not done so, to attend the BokSmart program.

“It will be worth it. It is interesting and there is something to learn for everyone.”

Amongst those who attended at the Groenkloof campus were Serfontein and Ludeke, Pieter Rossouw, Basil Carzis (Bulls), Ricardo Loubscher, Wessel Roux, Denzil Frans (Vodacup and u/21), Paul Anthony (u/19), Jannie Dreyer (Senior Amateur) and Jacques Swanepoel (Senior Amateur Limpopo).