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TONY SMITH Last updated 05:00 14/07/2011
Mark Swanepoel was born in South Africa, spent a bit of his boyhood in the Bay of Plenty and played in the world junior championships with Australia.
So why is the 20-year-old halfback – a young man uniquely qualified to represent any of the Sanzar unions – now about to start a campaign with Canterbury?
"It's an opportunity to play for the best province in the world," the recent Western Force No 9 said at Rugby Park yesterday.
"You'd want to take hold of that."
Swanepoel was five when his family left Johannesburg to live at Papamoa beach, near Tauranga. They were there five years and got their New Zealand citizenship when his "mum and dad went on their first holiday since we moved to New Zealand".
"They went to the Gold Coast and just fell in love with the place. We left three months later and have been on the Gold Coast since then, from the end of 2001."
But where does this rugby nomad feel most at home? The diplomatic corps, perhaps, judging by this answer: "Home is each country. Obviously my heritage is South African, but I spent a lot of my early childhood in New Zealand, so that holds a special spot and then obviously I've called Australia home for the last 10 years."
Swanepoel is a product of Southport School, a Gold Coast college with a proud rugby tradition. "We had a dynamic team. I think only one player in our backline from my final year hasn't got a professional contract."
How's this for a roll of honour: Jono Lance, who played fullback for the Reds in their Super 15 final triumph over the Crusaders, played outside Swanepoel at first five-eighth. Ben Tapuwai, the Reds' second five-eighth, filled the same role for Southport. Cronulla Sharks National Rugby League player Nathan Stapleton was at centre. Reds squad member and Australian sevens star Luke Morahan was on one wing and his younger brother, Simon, was at fullback. Wallabies prop James Slipper was in the Southport front row and Reds lock Rob Simmons also played for Southport in Swanepoel's time there.
Swanepoel represented his adopted country at schools level in 2007 and 2008 and was an Australian under-20 international in 2009.
He joined the Queensland Reds academy in 2009 but was soon on the move west.
He made his starting debut against the Hurricanes this year and retained the role against the Highlanders. That gave him a taste of top rugby so he was understandably reluctant to revert to club footy after playing for Manly in the New South Wales Shute Shield competition last year.
He spent the last half of that season filling in at first-five and "loved my time at Manly".
"But I wasn't going to go from having a taste of Super rugby to right back down to club rugby. I want to play the highest level I can and learn the most I can. I think NPC bridges that gap."
- The Press
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/p...ith-Canterbury
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