Two very different South Africans have grabbed the headlines in Britain this week. One is at the peak of his career, enjoying his first goal in England and is responsible for unfashionable Blackburn Rovers becoming the first side into the last four of the FA Cup.
The second admits to old legs and ”feeling like a grandad”, but led England to a dramatic 26-18 Six Nations rugby victory over France at Twickenham.
Aaron Mokoena, a veteran of 58 Bafana Bafana caps, is 26 and was born in the Vaal Triangle township of Boipatong.
Mokoena was dubbed Mbazo (The Axe). Suffice to say he tends to plough a sizeable furrow through the opposition’s midfield.
On Sunday, against Stuart Pearce’s increasingly pitiful Manchester City, it was Mokoena rather than his Bafana Bafana teammate and top-scorer Benni McCarthy who registered the opening goal in a relatively comfortable 2-0 FA Cup quarterfinal win at Ewood Park.
The youngest player ever to represent South Africa — back in 1999 when he was still a teenager — the road from Jo’burg, Gauteng, to Blackburn, Lancashire, has been a fairly twisty one for The Axe.
Starting off with Jomo Cosmos, he went via Ajax Amsterdam in 1999 to FC Gemina Beerschot, where he became a regular in 2002, to Belgian club Racing Genk, until Mark Hughes took him to Blackburn Rovers in 2005, where he has played 57 games.
A natural leader, Mokoena succeeded Lucas Radebe as the South African captain — and that’s where Mike Catt comes in. Leadership.
In 1992, Catt was an Eastern Province utility back struggling to find his way in the Currie Cup. He moved over to Bath, one of England’s rugby hotbeds and within three months found himself wearing the white shirt of England, thanks to his mum’s British passport.
Catt was frequently dropped by various England managers over the years — partly because of lack of form, but finally, after 67 internationals and 15 years at the top, he was named England captain for the game against unbeaten Grand Slam hunters France at Twickenham last Sunday.
Head coach Brian Ashton dug deep in his memory banks to recall his old Bath pal Catt, who hadn’t played in a Six Nations game since 2001, let alone led the side.
A mere hour after Mokoena’s goal-scoring triumph in Blackburn, there was Catt explaining how he had inspired a shock victory over the old enemy, France, at Twickenham.
He made the first try, narrowly missed scoring the winner, tackled like a dervish and limped off at the end with a hamstring injury that could yet restrict his captaincy to just the one game as England prepare to play Wales in the Six Nations finale at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday.
Mokoena said after the match: ”It was a fantastic game. Scoring in such an important game is very pleasing. I think we really needed it; we did well and we played as a team again and we think that maybe it’s our season.
”I think everything is possible. You just have to try to be as humble as possible and keep going. We will have to work really hard [if we want to go all the way].”
Mokoena also had time to appeal for teammate McCarthy’s return to the South African fold before Mark Hughes said of The Axe: ”He’s probably been one of our main players in this little run that we’ve had and he’s a crucial member of our squad.”
Blackburn face Tottenham or Chelsea next, which would be something of a challenge, but Mokoena and McCarthy could yet find themselves in May’s historic FA Cup final.
Catt’s version of his great success at Twickenham? ”I did feel a bit like a grandad out there. It was just wonderful to see how the young guys matured during the game and fed off us. It was really special and one of my most memorable experiences in international rugby.
”We got on the front foot and had the balls to play the way we trained, and it worked. The feeling, the emotional side of it, is fantastic. The boys played for each other and played to their strengths.
”There’s still a hell of a lot to learn, but from a team put together in five days, it was awesome.”
Catt. Mokoena. The South African export market remains as strong as ever on the sporting front. And we’ve got an FA Cup final and a Rugby World Cup to come for the pair of them. Hopefully.