Former Springbok players Rudy Page and Juan de Jong have made a smooth transition from rugby players to podcasting.
Sports careers are very short, and players tend to become TV pundits after playing, but even then only a few are chosen.
Former Springbok players Rudy Page and Juan de Jong took an unconventional path by taking a chance on themselves and taking part in podcasting.
The idea came to them several years ago when they were trading abroad.
“The whole idea of podcasting came about when I was playing rugby in France and Juan was playing rugby in England at the time. Podcasting was already popular in those regions and we thought we should start something there. I think that's what I thought,” Page said. citizen.
Former Stormers center De Jong played for Wasps from 2017 to 2021, while Page joined French top 14 side Clermont in 2019, and after a spell in Japan, he joined French rugby club at the end of 2022. – Retired in Vannes.
The two started a podcast. back side of rack Around July last year, Page said he wanted to change the perception of rugby players.
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podcasting
Former Blue Bulls scrum-half Page said he personally wanted to be a TV pundit, but the opportunities were few and far between.
“I haven't had that opportunity and I didn't know who to contact. But I do do a little bit of commentary for SuperSport schools from time to time in certain matches,” said the former scrum-half.
“But podcasting is about creating shows where we can be ourselves and we don't have to be someone else…Rugby players are fun, we're very intelligent, “It just shows that you show a completely different side to a rugby player,” he asserted.
De Jong is a full-time coach at Stellenbosch Sports Academy.
The two made the transition from performing to podcasting feel very easy.
“I think the reason why it seems easy is because we are ourselves, not faking or acting. We speak from a position of absolute honesty…our originality, our authenticity. Gender, empathy are essentially the core values of our show for us.”
While de Jong had a successful career in coaching after retiring, Page said it took him some time to find his place in the world outside of rugby.
“I went through periods of self-doubt, times where things didn't go my way, and times where I felt lost in the world,” Page said.
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Journey
The first episode of the podcast featured former Stormers rocker Marvin Ory. The pair have released more than 40 episodes since last July, and Page said their 10-month journey has been amazing.
“We've had 42 consecutive weeks of episodes so far. Look, 42 has been really interesting… 42 weeks of absolute chaos, fun, excitement, and tension,” Page said. I did.
He said challenges include losing a cable during recording and having to adapt to the situation, and conflicting opinions with De Jong about how to approach the show.
“It's just me and Juan, we have different opinions on what type of guests we should have, we have different opinions on certain rugby content, we have different opinions on what clothes to wear.” Paige said.
The two complement each other very well both on-screen and off-screen. “The synergy is obvious to everyone. Sometimes neither of us can see it,” Page said.
Some of the challenges include that these two are self-funded, so they have to compete with big online podcasts that have financial backing.
Mr Page said one of the benefits of the 10-month operation was that the sport had become more accessible to the public.
“Bringing rugby to people who can't afford to watch DSTV but want to hear players talk about upcoming matches and past results has been one of the positives so far. .”
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Player's perspective
The fact that they played rugby professionally makes their product more appealing because they know what they are talking about.
“I think the fact that we played the game, we understood and experienced every part of the game. People who haven't played the game don't know what the players go through… is what we want to offer our viewers: an in-depth look from a player's perspective,” said the former Lions and Free State Cheetahs player.
Some of the biggest episodes of Behind the Ruck are the sit-downs with Springbok captain Siya Kolisi and Manny Livbok, but Page can't decide which one is his favorite.
“Actually, I can't say which one stands out, but I love one of them in everyone. But it's the first one that I watch sometimes,” Page said.
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