When Cape Town-based biokinetisist Havelin Hindley’s rugby career came to a premature end at school, he never dreamt that he would one day be helping the Springboks of colour reach their full potential.

Hindley, who was drafted in as the first conditioner at the SA Rugby Academy in Cape Town, and former Springbok centre and medical doctor Brendan Venter have been running the Castle High Performance programme for the past two years.

The programme, a joint venture with SA Rugby, accommodates 30 players and is aimed at developing a group of players that can represent South Africa without the prejudice of quotas.

“We work closely with Springbok management to monitor and help improve the skills of players like Bryan Habana, JP Pietersen and Waylon Murray,” says the soft-spoken 27-year-old. “Currently we are focusing on helping the players reach their peak for next month’s Rugby World Cup in France.”

He says one of the key components of the High Performance programme is to evaluate players regularly.

“It is impossible to work towards a goal if you cannot evaluate players at different stages of their development. In the past it was thought near impossible to evaluate rugby specific skills, but, with the help of some top players and coaches, Brendan and I came up with a battery of tests to accurately measure the progress of players.”

Hindley says they follow a holistic approach with the programme, which is built on seven different pillars: conditioning, rugby related skills, sports psychology, nutrition, visual skills, injury prevention, and theory of the game.

Always looking for ways to make the programme more cutting-edge, Hindley is now working closely with Redplane, a biotechnology company that designs and develops  the Elexoma electro-biologic devices, to introduce microcurrent technology to the programme.

“Cranial Electro-biologic Stimulation (CES) can make a significant contribution to the game,” says Hindley. “It was used by the Bulls during their winning Super 14 campaign this year to combat the effects of jet lag, improve concentration and treat soft tissue injuries.

Rugby final

“Mental fitness is becoming an ever-increasing part of the game and therefore I believe CES has a huge role to play. In my opinion, it will become just as much a part of sport as pre-match warm-ups and strapping.”
 
Hindley and Venter operate from Gordons Bay and use the facilities at Newlands, Western Province’s field in Bellville or the local fields of the various Super 14 teams to whip the players into top shape.

The programme also involves the provincial coaches who keep Hindley in the loop about the players’ progress. Hindley personally evaluates the players’ skills every three months through their unique tests.

Other specialists who work with the players – including the Springboks’ dietician, sports psychologist and visual skills trainer – draw up progress reports in their specific fields and send these to Hindley and Venter.
 
Hindley says he and former Wallaby David Campese is currently working on a national skills development project that they want to introduce at school-level.

Despite his national success, the former Gordon High School pupil and University of the Western Cape student remains a loyal Capetonian, assisting local clubs like St George’s, Tygerberg, University of the Western Cape, Strand and Belhar.