Another of our rugby headed brethren from across the oceans, Dion is a born and bred Saffa who contributes many an insightful post on the forum, many that are made into 'frontpagers' to be recorded for posterity.  Rugby supporters like Dion make you forgive and forget the dickwads that appear at times on the forum on a 'gloat and go' mission when the All Blacks lose!!  Joined up in August of 2005, and has been going strong ever since!

Forum member number 1699.

Describe yourself in 25 words or less:  Just your average down to earth guy who is passionate about a few things in life including rugby.

What international rugby team do you support and why?  The Springboks without doubt. When I was a kid back in 1980, my Dad sat me down in front of an old black and white TV to watch the Boks take on the British Lions. From that day I was hooked and have passionately followed the Springboks over decades through good times and bad.

What Super 14 team do you support and why? The Sharks and the Lions. Born and bred in Durban. I used to visit Kings Park as a kid in the days when Natal, as they were then known, were in the B section.  Regardless, we could identify with the players because unlike today, they all graduated from schools that we were familiar with in and around Durban. A couple of guys we knew from my school and schools we had played rugby against, went on to represent Natal.  As a young adult, I moved to Johannesburg and began visiting Ellis Park in order to feed my rugby appetite. I began slowly developing a bond for the local provincial side and after a year or two, I was a fully fledged Lion supporter. Natal moved back into the A section, and when the two sides met, it was difficult to cheer one over the other. I wanted neither side to lose.  Eventually I developed a policy of cheering for the side with the better prospect in the competition they played.

What's the biggest challenge facing rugby? The thing that concerns me most is the drain on local player resources. This is not just a South African problem but an international one. There seems a relentless raid on southern hemisphere players who are lost to their national cause by the lure of the mighty Euro/pound. Even emerging talent who may in a few years be national stars are snapped up before we even get to know them. To be honest, I don’t know the solution to this one.

Who was the game's greatest ever player? Actually there were a few but for me it was always Danie Gerber. Watching him at test or provincial level was always something special.  Watching him jinking and moving through opposition defence for me was rugby’s equivalent of poetry. Other fantastic players were Christian Cullen. Used to hate it when he lined up against the Boks but what a graciously gifted player.  Scored some of the best tries ever of the modern era. Serge Blanco, John Eales, Jean Pierre Reeves, Carel du Plessis and Carlos Spencer would be other players definitely worth mentioning.

How about non-NZ players? Who were/are the greatest?  I think I covered that one!

The best match you have ever seen?  Definitely the 1995 world cup final between the All Blacks and the Boks just for the monumental place it had in the annuls of SA history and what that did for our country at the time. That was a magical day that I will never forget. The second world cup win for me was not quite as sweet and savouring as that magnificient moment in time.

The best try you have ever seen? There has been so many but the ones I loved the most was Jonah Lomu crashing over Mike Catt in Cape Town in 1995. Bryan Habana’s two solo efforts for the Bulls against the Auckland Blues some seasons back at Loftus, Bryan Habana’s two runaway tries against the Ozzies at Perth in 2005…and a video clip of a try scored before my time, but one I have watched over and over for sheer admiration of the try… Gareth Edwards scoring in the corner for the Baabaas against the All Blacks following a jinking break from Phil Bennet inside his 22. Classic stuff.

What position did you play, if you played, in rugby? Ah…I like to think of myself as a fearless flanker during my playing days who took no prisoners nor nonsense in the forward exchanges. I remember playing against a rival school and their hooker was quite a bully boy with a mean reputation who was succeeding in intimidating most of our own forwards with some off the ball rough stuff. I committed an act of foul play by letting him have one right in the choppers. (I noticed the ref on the other side of the scrum looking the other way). My coach however saw it and after the game I expected to get a roasting from him. Instead he congratulated me for sorting the guy out, and praised me for being smart enough not to get seen by the ref

What do you like about the Silverfern? Everything pretty much. I enjoy the conflict of opinions and the lively debates. I enjoy the banter and the knowledgeable opinions of everyday fans. Like this weekend after the Boks win in Dunedin, I enjoy the sportsmanship that comes from rival supporters who get onto the boards and congratulate the other guys…even when defeat is painful.

How could the site be improved?  I'll be honest. I am quite satisfied as it is

Who's your favourite poster? There are many great posters. Knock on Wood, Dodge. PB is a passionate fernster, Virgil, Redbeard. Oh, and TB is always full value for money.

Who's the worst poster? BSG…oops, can I say that, no, ok, then, not BSG...

How could the game of rugby be improved?  In our domestic competition, the TMO is called into rule on forward passes and other non in goal area calls. I find that this allows the ref to ship off many of his own responsibilities onto the TMO and really destroys the continuity of the match. Lets hope that it is not implemented on a permanent basis. At the moment the non tri nation countries are playing one set of rules, the Tri nations another and our domestic competition a third. This can’t be good for rugby.  Lets all get back to one set of rules.

What rugby player would you turn gay for? None , I am sorry to say. But if you asked me which rugby player I would most want to have a drink with, it would be Tana Umaga…provided he promised not to wallop me with a handbag after a couple of toots. Another would be Francois Pienaar. True gentlemen of the game.

Non-rugby questions now:

Favourite music?  I enjoy a broad range of music, I would,nt be able to single out any specific one.

Favourite book? When I was a kid, I read a book called “The silver sword”. It was a heart wrenching world war 2 story that left a lasting impression on me. As an adult, I have never been able to find the book.

Favourite Film? Someone else also nominated this film but I got to say, it had me gripped and I watched it several times over. “The Shawshank redemption”. It was the first time I had taken note of Morgan Freeman in film. Now whenever I see a DVD in which he stars, I have to see the movie  irrespective of the story line.

Biggest lifetime regret?  That I never took up cricket as a sport. It never appealed to me growing up, but now as an adult I so regret not having played the sport.  I think I might have done quite well at it. Today the best competitive cricket I get to play is with my son in the back yard.

Greatest hope?  To see my son grow up living his life to his full potential and god given talents