Building a winning side that will attract huge crowds to the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth is a top priority for the new owners of the Isuzu Southern Kings PRO14 rugby franchise, consortium chair Loyiso Dotwana said.
Last season, the Kings could win only one of their 21 matches, and small crowds watched the team play as they struggled to keep their heads above water in the European league.
“We want to win matches here at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium and that is what it is about,” Dotwana said.
“Winning is what is going to bring crowds back to the stadium. This has to be a successful franchise.
“If you look at the history of the franchises in South Africa, they are all battling.
“If you look at recent statements from SA Rugby, they are looking at curtailing the player numbers in franchises.
“They have become financially unsustainable.“We don’t want to fall into that same trap. The Southern Kings have to be commercially viable.
“The consortium does not expect to make money out of this transaction, but we are also not in this business to lose money. What we want is to have a sustainable business that is viable and one that is to the benefit of everyone in the community.”
Though Dotwana would not reveal how much their stake in the franchise was, they will have control in deciding how its affairs are run.
Insiders say the consortium will own 76% of the franchise, and the EP Rugby Union 24%.
The other members of the consortium are businessmen Gary Markson, Rory Stear and Kenny Govender and businesswoman Vuyo Zitumane.
“It needs businesspeople running a franchise in line with key corporate governance principles. We will focus on building a sustainable and successful business,” Dotwana said.
“Our consortium, which is a group of like-minded Eastern Cape businesspeople, has decided to take the plunge and purchase a majority shareholding in our local rugby team.
“While a binding offer has been made, strongly supported by Isuzu, it is still subject to normal conditions precedent and SA Rugby executive approval, which we are confident will be finalised shortly.
“If you had asked me over a year ago, if I would have been involved in something like this, my answer would have been no.
“I work in engineering and construction industries and not the sport sector.
“My interest was first piqued when I was assigned, as part of a Nelson Mandela Bay Chamber of Business delegation, to work on a plan to support local rugby and also to make the stadium viable.
“As I learnt more, the more interested I became and the more I realised the important role sport, and especially rugby, has to play in promoting social cohesion.
“It also stimulates the growth of the local economy.
“I soon found there were others who shared similar thinking and were willing to put their time, efforts and resources behind this.”
Now that they have more financial muscle, it is expected that the Kings will bolster their squad with some star signings.
On Monday, the Kings announced that they had signed former Springbok wing Bjorn Basson and bustling Bulls centre Ulrich Beyers.
The other confirmed new Kings signings are locks JC Astle and Schalk Oelofse, and scrumhalf Sarel Pretorius.