For a Springbok on tour, life can be tough. Not just because of the pressure of the game, but because of the long distance from the heart of their family. But there’s always someone they can turn to, a Mom Away From Mom who will make them feel at home
“Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family…in another city,” said the comedian George Burns. Yep, family can be a real pain in the you know where. But surely better than the pain of not having one, or the pain of being far, far away?
Remember that cheesy ad showing Handre Pollard sitting on a blanket somewhere in New Zealand, celebrating an anniversary of sorts with his SA based better half via iPad? Yes, the one that played about 40 times a weekend for an entire Super Rugby season. But as irritating as it may have been, it certainly represents the reality of life away from home for a modern day pro rugby player.
The life of a pro rugby player may look glamorous on TV and Twitter, but imagine being 15 000km away on the day of your kid’s first birthday, or on the day your father-in-law passes away?
WhatsApp and FaceTime have certainly made it easier, but sometimes you just need a great big bear hug from the one you love.
Enter PR and Admin Manager Annelee Murray, the “Mom away from mom” to the Springboks.
Annelee has worked with 14 Springbok captains – André Vos, Bob Skinstad, Corné Krige, John Smit, Victor Matfield, Johann Muller, Jean de Villiers, Schalk Burger, Fourie du Preez, Pat Lambie, Adriaan Strauss, Warren Whiteley, Siya Kolisi, and Eben Etzebeth – and has been with the Boks for well over 200 Tests.
“She’s really the mom of the team. I can’t imagine the Springbok team without her,” says former skipper Jean de Villiers. “She’s basically the reason that the players are always happy. The Springboks without Annelee would just not be the same.”
Her role is multi-faceted, but primarily it is to make the players feel at home wherever they are. On match day, she is at the stadium by 8am, sorting out the change room. Jerseys are put out, names are put on lockers, and personalised juices and snacks are laid out.
As Annelee puts it, “We try to make it feel like we have a home-ground advantage and give the players a sense of belonging, so that they feel like the country is behind them.”
She makes sure wives, girlfriends, babies and babysitters are taken care of and happy, and she ensures that all the behind-the-scenes stuff, such as media requests and random drug testing requests, are seen to.
“My phone is on 24 hours a day,” she says. “If the guys call me at three in the morning, then I deal with it then and there.”
Including dealing with a player who once invited two girlfriends into the box by accident! Annelee and I have had our run ins over the years, primarily because of the different hats I have worn when interacting with the Boks, but for Momma Bok, it has always been about one thing, and she is extremely passionate and protective of her herd.
One of the great traditions instilled by Annelee is the handing over of a cake to any Bok who celebrates his birthday while in camp or on tour.
Merriam Webster defines family as the basic unit in society, traditionally consisting of two parents rearing their children.
But I think the Urban Dictionary gets it right, defining family as a group of people, usually of the same blood (but not necessarily), who genuinely love, trust, care about, and look out for each other.
Not to be mistaken with relatives sharing the same household who hate each other. Real family is a bond that cannot be broken by any means. And as a rugby player, that naturally includes your team mates.
(Picture: South African Rugby)
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