Boks pay tribute to Maimane
by Jason Humphries 14 September 2012, 05:08
Springbok captain Jean de Villiers paid tribute to former Springbok technical analyst Malome Peter Maimane, who died on Thursday, describing him as an ‘integral’ part of the team during his term.
Maimane, 41, served with the Springboks as an analyst from 2008 until the conclusion of the 2011 Rugby World Cup before passing away after a short illness.
“It was very sad to hear this morning, when we woke up, that someone who was a part of this team for four years, he started with Peter de Villiers as an analyst for the team in 2008, sadly passed away yesterday,” De Villiers said from Dunedin on Friday.
“He was an integral part of the team, he had a great personality and will be missed. It is a sad day for us today,” he added.
Maimane gained his first coaching qualification aged just 23 before working his way through the coaching structures at the Blue Bulls.
He worked as a technical advisor for the Bulls and Lions Super Rugby teams and as an analyst to both the SA under-19 and Emerging South Africa teams before receiving the call to work with the senior side.
De Villiers said that the team would pay proper tribute to Maimane when the team returned to South Africa after playing the All Blacks in Dunedin on Saturday.
“We probably won’t be wearing black armbands tomorrow but will show our condolences when we are back in South Africa, in front of our own people, to show respect for the man that he was,” he explained.
