Willem Strauss re-elected as president of the Blue Bulls
After Willem Strauss has already made a noticeable difference in the eight months during which he served as interim president of the Blue Bulls Rugby Union, he was last week re-elected unopposed for a new four-year term.
Willem Strauss, who was elected as interim president of the Blue Bulls in March this year after the resignation of Gert Wessels, has won the confidence of the union’s management and he was re-elected unopposed last week for a full term of four years.
Strauss was appointed into the role on an interim basis earlier this year in March, and he held the reins with pride. He was responsible for spearheading some great initiatives on both professional and amateur levels.
Since his election as president of the union, he also took over as chairman of the board of directors at the Blue Bulls Company.
“It’s no secret that I have dedicated my life to the beautiful game of rugby. I am honoured and privileged to be granted the opportunity to lead the Blue Bulls once again. We have been blessed with some of the most amazing people that have supported our efforts on both the professional and amateur sides,” said Strauss after his re-election.
Strauss has already made a remarkable difference on the amateur level of rugby in Pretoria after taking over the reins.
Except for the reinstatement of the famous Loftus 200 team, whereby top club rugby players were given the opportunity to play in Blue Bulls colours against provincial rivals and even professional opponents; the well-known ‘Platteland’ amateur provincial tournament for players from lower club leagues also revived under his leadership.
In addition, Strauss has played a leading role in establishing new club leagues which will make amateur rugby ready for the new dispensation that is expected for the South African rugby community.
However, Strauss will have to use all his experience and knowledge in the next few months to provide crucial leadership with difficult decisions that must be made at Loftus Versfeld regarding matters that can have a huge influence on the future of the Blue Bulls.
“We are on the doorstep of an exciting new era for both the Bulls and the Blue Bulls Rugby Union, with some big appointments to be announced soon. Stability and consistency are of the utmost importance at this stage, and fans can be assured that I will do my best to ensure this,” Strauss said about these challenges.
The process to appoint a successor for the retiring CEO of the Blue Bulls Company, Barend van Graan, is already well advanced and an announcement in this regard is anticipated before the end of October.
Meanwhile, Strauss will also be in charge during the process of finding a new candidate to fill John Mitchell’s position as director of rugby and head coach of the Bulls’ Super Rugby team.
After his re-election Strauss also gave full credit to a strong support structure around him, including the management team and personnel. According to Strauss he fully believes that with his team, he will make rugby in Pretoria a force to be reckoned with.
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