If there is one thing Shakira Mamphoke loves doing, it is so sidestep and dummy with a rugby ball in hand, and she is pretty good at it.
During the World University Invitational Tournament in Bordeaux, France, Mamphoke was the top try scorer of Tuks Air France’s women’s team. Two of her best try-scoring efforts were against the New Zealanders.
Another highlight for Mamphoke was being part of the Blue Bulls Daisies team that won the Women’s Premier Division Trophy.
It won’t be wrong to say that Mamphoke fell in love with rugby the first time she saw the game being played. That same day, she started to contemplate how she could join in. It was not easy. At that stage, rugby was a man’s game. But she was not going to be put off by that.
When she got to Pretoria, Mamphoke convinced the boys at her school to allow her to play with them. She also joined the Stanza Bopape Rugby Club in Mamelodi, playing scrumhalf. At first, the boys were wary of her on-field presence.
“It was as if they were scared to tackle me because I am a girl. So, it was up to me to set the challenge. When I got the ball in one game, I outfoxed the opponents defence to score a try. That showed the ‘boys’ I meant business. From then, it was ‘game on’ I was tackled, and I returned the ‘favour’ as well as I could. It was important to show the men that I can play rugby. I never got to play in the big tournaments. I played mostly friendlies. But all changed as I started to play for women’s teams.
“What I love about rugby is the on-field aggressiveness and the hard running. It is so unique to any other sport.”
Mamphoke is relaxed about getting injured and believes in going the extra mile to achieve goals.
“Pain is, to me, part and parcel of playing rugby. It might sound strange, but only when we fight pain, it morphs into suffering.
“When I got a call to play for the Blue Bulls Daisies, I was overweight. So I was told to play hooker. It did not work out because I am small in stature, which is far from ideal when playing hooker. So I had to make a choice. Be overweight, sit on the bench, or lose weight, get fitter, and play. I chose the latter. I am glad I did because now I play as a winger.”
Mamphoke sees Rosco Specman, one of the legends of Springbok Sevens, as a role model. At times, when she gets frustrated when not getting enough game time, he is the one who encourages her not to give up on her dreams.
She is also a keen rugby student, admitting that following the Springboks World Cup victory campaign was inspiring.
“I got to be a massive Canan Moodie and Cheslin Kolbe fan. If I can be half as good as they are as a winger, I will be happy.”