I spent two days with a most amazing, quite and gentle man; Siya Kolisi. Rugby player for The Springboks, and The Stormers. Over the two days we visited some of his old haunts in and around Port Elizabeth.

 

The old Dan QeQe (Google him) Stadium in Zwide, where young and old still go to play rugby and cricket within the confines of the township.

 

The decrepid and ruined Boet Erasmus Stadium, where in its glory days a black rugby player would never have had the opportunity to play.

 

A local shisa nyama in Kwazakhele Township, where we met up with some of his old friends. (Shisa nyama is a term used in many South African townships to describe an informal barbecue or braai where friends come together near a butchery, to grill meat in an open fire. The site is usually provided by the butcher owner and only people who buy meat from the butcher are allowed to use the facility. Shisa nyama is a Zulu phrase and it literally means "burn meat".)

 

Siya's old junior school; Emsengeni Primary in Kwazakhele, to visit his favourite teacher Eric Songwiqi, then to his dormitory at Grey High School, where he earned a full scholaship to play rugby.

 

One of the most touching visits was to his home in the township, where he slept on the living room floor, using the seat cushions from the sofa as his bed, for most of his formative years.

 

I hope you enjoy these picture, and what they represent to Siya, as much as I did taking them.