AT THE age of 10, South Africa captain Siya Kolisi’s grandmother died in his arms after falling sick.
Kolisi’s mother was just 16 when she gave birth – so his grandmother ended up raising him.
But six years after she passed away, his mother was also gone, exposing the raw reality of life in Port Elizabeth’s Zwide township.
Every day he would wake up and not know where his next meal would come.
The jam sandwiches at school were an absolute life-saver, even though the family struggled to cobble together the £3-a-year school fees.
Life growing up for the Springboks’ first-ever black Test captain was a different world to that of the privileged England stars – most of whom ended up going to the best boarding schools in the country.
Kolisi sleep on the floor, sometimes on pillows from a couch that he laid out to make a bed.
Recalling his tough upbringing, the 26-year-old said: “I’m grateful to my grandmother, because she did everything she could to give me a life.
“She would go without food so that I could eat. My first goal was to get a meal at the end of the day.
“Now I set much higher goals. I want to be one of the best players in the Springbok team and one of the best players in the world.
“There weren’t a lot of people to look up to so you had to be strong. Rugby was my way out.”
Kolisi didn’t speak a word of English growing up and toys didn’t exists in his world where most of his friends turned to drinking and smoking. But, Kolisi’s prize-possession was a brick.
He said: “I loved playing with that brick.
“I just enjoyed life when I was young and wanted to be happy with the things I had. I never dreamed of being a rugby player.
“All I wanted was to have a good life and make a good life for my family.”
Kolisi still returns to his roots at the end of Africa in Port Elizabeth.
And when his half-brother Liyema and half-sister Liphelo were adopted by social workers following the death of his father, he made it his mission to find them in the township.
Finally, in 2014 the family were back together and they now live in Cape Town where Kolisi is the no.1 star for Eddie Jones’ old Super Rugby side, The Stormers.
The openside told Rugby World: “I don’t see rugby as a job – I love doing what I do and I want to inspire as many people as I can, especially those from the same background as me.
“It’s not about the pay cheque. I want to help people as much as I can.
“It’s vital people are an example for younger kids, show them how you can make it in South Africa so they don’t have to look elsewhere for role models, to America or other countries.
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“No matter where you come from, if you put hard work in you can achieve. Kids in South Africa hopefully see people like me make it and give back to less fortunate people.
“I hope people get opportunities and I hope they don’t forget where they came from and give back. We should all work together.”
South Africa still has its deep-rooted race issues after apartheid.
The government wants coach Rassie Erasmus to have a team which is 50 per cent black by the 2019 World Cup.
So even though Kolisi is there by absolute merit, there are still Boks fans ready to knock the black players as quota picks.
Former MP and the Rainbow Nation’s FA president, Danny Jordan says its time to celebrate Kolisi like they would Usain Bolt or Lewis Hamilton.
The Bafana Bafana boss and anti-apartheid campaigner said: “We celebrate a Usain Bolt‚ we celebrate every other black athlete.
“We celebrate Serena Williams in tennis‚ Lewis Hamilton in motor racing‚ Jonah Lomu and all other players.
“Black athletes that we celebrate‚ the Peles we celebrate but when it comes to South Africa and there is a great black athlete‚ we must find some other designation to label him or her.
“It is just something that this country must move away from.
“We must celebrate Kolisi as a captain and I am sure that not only has he got the ability as a player‚ but he also has leadership qualities. He’s a leader.”
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