This April will mark three years without the Dairibord Rugby Festival.
For many schoolboys and girls, the Dairibord Rugby Festival was that one hive to showcase their talents. The mood at most boys’ school training sessions would be ecstatic as they anticipate indemnity forms for camp in preparation for this once a year festival. A specific culture had been built around the event. Unfortunately, all the work done from the days when David Whitehead sponsored the Festival to when Cottco adopted the same seems to have been easily thrown away.
There have been many conspiracies on why the Festival has not taken place. Many were quick to point fingers at the current administrators of the Festival, Prince Edward School, for being incompetent and inexperienced. The fact that Covid-19 hit and there seemed to be no proper planning around the consequences of the pandemic is probably why the sport is now suffering. Prince Edward is a public school, and there is no way they can go against government directives, especially on schools sports.
Festival director, Tawanda Jimu, revealed to EntersportNews that there wasn’t going to be a festival. It was also impossible for him to plan a successful showcase this year.
Jimu said, “To be realistic, it will be impossible to host the Festival this year. The Festival takes about a year to plan, and even if the government is to allow schools to play the sport today, it is not going to be possible to have an event we would hope for.”
Part of the assumable problem that Jimu faces is that since Prince Edward school is the apple of the government’s eye, they will be under scrutiny.
A conversation with a representative from Dairibord revealed that the beverage company is still keen on sponsoring the Festival but only when the government allows schools to play sport.
Asked whether they will sponsor the Festival, the source close to Dairibord said, “It’s too early; SRC hasn’t granted sports activities in schools yet. We haven’t gone public to say we don’t have the Festival. We have always had them in our plans, and it is Covid in the way.”
There is gross uncertainty on the Prince Edward festival. St John’s College has sent invitations to rugby playing schools for the much anticipated Derby Day.
St John’s Sports Director, Doug Trivella, confirmed the Festival and that dates had been already set.
He said, “We have sent invites to all rugby playing schools. We set the dates for the last week of the April holidays, which is between 25-30 April. Our major sponsors will be Health International, but we will also have other sponsors for the event.”
The only government schools invited are Prince Edward and Churchill. If Prince Edward and Churchill then attend this new Festival, they will be justified because they cannot have three years without competitive schools competition.
What will happen to the other public schools is of primary concern now. It seems as though the public schools will have to suffer from the effects of Covid-19 because NASH and public schools sports departments have not been taking rugby seriously.
Whatever has been laid down before seems to have been defeated. The game’s growth in public schools is what’s now at stake. The private schools are solidifying their dominance in national rugby structures, whereas the government schools continue to suffer a sharp decline.
The government mandates that learners be completely educated under the updated curriculum. As it stands right now, without any sport in schools, the future of Zimbabwean sport is bleak.
Without the schools league and the Dairibord Rugby Festival, rugby in public schools is now in a coma, requiring urgent resuscitation.
