On Monday, director of rugby, Jimmy Stonehouse announced that the Mpumalanga Rugby Union (MRU) and Mpumalanga Rugby (MR) (Pty) Ltd had formally appointed Marius van Rensburg as the chief executive officer of both the Mpumalanga Rugby Union and Mpumalanga Rugby (Pty) Ltd.

“Marius has proved himself over the years as a rugby person who is loyal, knowledgeable and skilled, who is calm and can be decisive and firm when the occasion demands it. He was born with a rugby ball in his hands, learned his rugby in the tough SWD schools and club environment and structures as a player and coach before joining SWD Rugby as team manager,” he said.

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Stonehouse added that he had met Van Rensburg there and was fortunate to coax him to join the Pumas in January 2008. “We can honestly say the Pumas have been built around the stable rock that is Marius. His attention to detail and his patience with players and management, including me (Stonehouse added with a laugh) has meant that all players have a sense of belonging and the Pumas family values are entrenched.”

“As the professional side we, the players, technical support staff and coaches, thank Marius for his dedication and professionalism to the team over the past 13 years and wish him all the success in this new demanding role,” concluded Stonehouse.

Read more in Thursday’s print edition of Lowvelder. 

Ontmoet: Marius van Rensburg