Long-serving physio Rene Naylor: Why I'm leaving Springboks
Today at 03:08 AM
Rene Naylor is undoubtedly one of the most familiar faces in the Springbok management team, but the long-serving physiotherapist oversaw her final game with the team against Wales on Sunday.
Having been involved in over 100 Test matches with the Springboks since 2008, she explained in an interview with IOL Sport why she was leaving the national team, while insisting it wasn’t a ‘retirement’.
“I hate the word 'retirement'," Naylor said. "Because it feels like you're retreating, stepping back from danger. I don't see it as retirement. I still feel I can be involved in sport and rugby. I don't feel my time's up in rugby because I've spent 30 years working as a physio, and I've been with the Springboks since 2008.
"I've never been on a full time contract, so it's always been a fixed term contract, and my contract ends this year and they were not going to renew it. So it gave me time to reflect, and I thought maybe this is the time for a reset and think about other roles I could possible play in sport and in rugby.”
Often spotted on the sidelines during Test matches, Naylor shared a particularly special video on social media after her final match with the Springboks in Cardiff on Sunday, which showed how she was struggling to get security to allow her son Cullin onto the pitch. In the end, Springbok centre Jesse Kriel ‘comes to the rescue’, and helps bring her son onto the field to share in the moment with her.
Naylor also shared another picture standing alongside Siya Kolisi. “It's about the kindness. The kindness shown to me on my journey. Sometimes it comes from unexpected people and places. It's the kindness that I will carry forward with me. Thank you to one of the greatest leaders in South Africa @siyakolisi … My last Springbok test match,” she wrote.
The posts can be seen below or by clicking here
Rene Naylor has been a ‘fixture’ within the Springbok squad
Naylor has practiced as a physiotherapist for nearly 30 years and has worked almost exclusively with rugby players from amateur to elite level.
“Rene has almost 130 caps as part of the Springbok rugby medical team,” Naylor’s bio reads on her website.
“This culminated in World Cup success in 2019. Her professional contribution to the Springbok campaign demonstrated to girls and boys from all walks of South African life that they too could aspire to be on that world stage and achieve that dream.
“Rene Naylor has shown the power of perseverance and purpose many times over and carries that same dedication for the proverbial ‘full 80 minutes’ of her motherhood, physiotherapy, consulting and public speaking.
“Her vision to bridge the gap of injury management and prevention between professional and amateur rugby teams, has seen her as being regarded as one of the foremost global practitioners in sports physiotherapy.
“In a career that has seen Rene take position as part of Springbok management team boasting the highest staff compliment made up of women seen at a Rugby World Cup tournament. Her dedication to women empowerment and advancing sports injury prevention remains her primary focus.”
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