Sbu Nkosi, of the Bulls. Picture: Gallo Images
Springbok and Bulls wing Sbu Nkosi says he is himself again, he feels energised again and is ready to get back into the action.
Nkosi has had a tough time of late, going AWOL from the Bulls, and later being found in Mpumalanga where he had gone into hiding.
It later emerged he was suffering under the pressure of being a professional rugby player and the expectations that go with that.
The winger, who has played for the Sharks for most of his senior career, joined the Bulls a year ago.
In an interview published on Youtube late on Friday, Nkosi speaks about his life and career and what he hopes to still achieve in rugby.
He starts the interview by saying he is “out of the cave”, later describing it as a “very dark place where he was alone” and goes on to say “I’m feeling myself again and my spirit is revived.
“I was a shadow of the man I’m supposed to be. I needed to take a step back to fix that before it became a problem.”
The 26-year-old, who was found by Bulls CEO Edgar Rathbone, who pledged the union’s support for the player, at the player’s father’s house in Witbank in early December, said added he felt like a new man.
“The confidence is back, the vision is clear. There was a lot of ‘cloudedness’ and that’s now disappeared. And that’s how I need to be to be myself to be my full potential.”
Nkosi then speaks about the start of his situation and the “triggers” that impacted him and how things got “heavy again” after joining the Bulls from the Sharks; this despite the good environment he found himself in at Loftus Versfeld.
“At some point, bad luck would compound on top of each other, it’s like I was fighting, there was negative energy … things started to spiral.”
Nkosi refers to the injury setbacks which cost him a place in the Springbok team as being the bad luck.
“I come back from an ankle injury, build up momentum and then a broken rib. Questions build up … the ball normally bounces in my direction, but it wasn’t.”
Nkosi also speaks about having to have a thick skin in sport and addresses the issue of critics and criticism in professional sport, and later also about “if he didn’t take care of himself, there would be Rest in Peace messages for him.”
But he adds he’s “excited to come back”.
“I’m strong again, I’ve got energy again … pressure, no. I’m happy I’m out of this, some people don’t get out of this. We lost Riky (Rick) last year.”
Nkosi is also asked in the interview what it is like being a young, black sports star in South Africa.
“It’s special and it’s daunting. And it’s a big responsibility, because you’re a voice and you represent people, and people look up to you. But it’s also fun,” he says.
Nkosi says he is now ready to be back, after taking time away from the world, not rugby, and he is excited to play again, and see his home, Loftus Versfeld, and his team-mates.
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