Meet MacGyver; the Bulls scrum' fix-it man
by Brenden Nel 23 July 2010, 12:44
Meet MacGyver, the prop who is aiming to fix the Vodacom Blue Bulls scrum.
Twenty-four year old Currie Cup rookie Dean Greyling might not be the name on many people’s lips at the moment, but if he continues performing like his first few games in this year’s competition, he most certainly will be.
But perhaps the reason why few people know Dean Greyling is exactly that -- his first name isn’t really Dean. Well, it was, and then it wasn’t and currently the birth certificate of the young Blue Bull has another first name for him -- MacGyver Dean Greyling.
Before you chuckle, there is a story behind the name, and while Greyling is more affectionately known as “Wors” to his teammates on and off the field, at 122kg and 1.88m he certainly is a big piece of beef, whatever his first name may be.
It seems that Greyling, while a youngster, was besotted with the television programme MacGyver and pestered his folks to the extent that they actually changed his name on his birth certificate. All grown up now, there was the idea to change it, but Greyling decided otherwise.
“My name at birth was just Dean Greyling,” the big prop laughs, “but I was mad about the television programme MacGyver as a child. I really liked it and asked my mom to name me MacGyver and she said yes.
“From there on, I never answered if they called Dean but only by my other name. I was MacGyver to them. When I reached 18, my mom suggested I change it back, but I don’t know. I thought it was kinda cool so I kept it.
“Not many people call me that anymore, only guys in the team trying to be funny. To most people I’m simply Wors.”
Like the television character Greyling is looking to play his part in making the Bulls scrum the most powerful and even though they have struggled in the first few games this season, he is keenly looking forward to getting things on track.
“I’ve been waiting for the opportunity for a long time now, and can’t wait to make an impact this season,” he added before turning to the bigger question of the ailments of the front row.
“I won’t say we’re under pressure, but rather that perhaps we don’t know each other as well as we should as a unit. Werries (Werner Kruger) and Garra (Gary Botha) have been together for the entire Super 14. But with me coming in at loosehead, there have been a few niggles, small things that we will correct as we play together for longer. You can try and practice them on a scrum machine, but there are advantages to live scrums.
“I’m learning a lot from Gary and see him as a mentor to me. I’m learning a lot from him and I’ve learnt alot already. We aren’t really that much under pressure, but rather probably haven’t played enough together as a unit. That will be rectified as the season goes on.”
For now his primary task is to shed a bit of weight, and that, courtesy of extra fitness sessions with Bulls fitness coach Basil Carzils and forwards coach Johan van Graan, is right on track.
“I’ve lost quite a bit of weight but I’m still a bit heavy to play a full 80 minutes. I still need to shed some four or five kilograms and then I’ll be more in the action with the ball. The last time I played a full 80 minutes before the Currie Cup was in the Vodacom Cup. I’m doing these extra sessions now so it should pay off.
“The Bulls expect their loosehead prop to go the full 80, and they replace the tighthead, preferring to put another back on the bench.”
Greyling scored an excellent try against the Sharks, carrying three defenders over the line. If he can emulate his television hero, and find a cure for the scrum worries, then he may start to gather his own passionate following as well.