Charles James Benjamin, 1943-2014
The South African Rugby Union has noted with sadness the passing for former Proteas flyhalf Charles Benjamin, who passed away on Saturday aged 70.
Charles Benjamin earned his rugby stripes in the Progress RFC of the Caledon Rugby Union and from that modest platform gradually worked his way to the top of the game.
He was a bricklayer by trade and the combination of manual labour and executing his daily task according to a well-designed building plan, may have contributed to Benjamin developing into an uncompromising, aggressive but tactically skillful player and a well-rounded flyhalf.
As a result of this combination of factors, he soon won selection into the Caledon provincial team and subsequently into the SA Rugby Federation XV team for the annual inter-racial tests between the African Springboks and the Proteas in October 1966 at the Kwaford Stadium in Port Elizabeth.
Partnering the Federation’s most skillfull centre, Cissie Damons, Benjamin’s inclusion attracted positive comment from the Cape Herald who described him as “a young player with the ability to do the right thing with the ball at the right time”.
The Proteas, after a painful defeat in the previous test, scored a solid 24-6 victory with Benjamin being identified as one of the most impressive players on the field.
According to the local press, Benjamin had ‘a field day’ and his performance was enough to secure his inclusion into the team for the second test of the 1966 series which the African Springboks won, 8-6.
Benjamin fell out of favour with the selectors following the series and was consigned to the rugby wilderness and had to ply his trade in the provincial competition in which he continued to serve the Southern Union with distinction.
When he was eventually recalled in September 1971, five years after his debut, after the Proteas suffered a series of crushing defeats against the African Springboks, the Cape Herald rightly described him as “the man from the past”.
However, Benjamin outplayed the likes of Errol Tobias and John Stubbs to establish himself as the first choice flyhalf for the historic tour of the Proteas to the United Kingdom and Holland in 1971-72 – the first ever overseas tour of a Black representative South African team.
The tour was particularly difficult with anti-apartheid protests in the UK and dissatisfaction and opposition at home. Furthermore, the players had to cope with difficult climatic conditions such a bitterly cold weather and freezing-point temperatures and snow as well as on ‘slushy’ playing fields.
True to form, Benjamin made it into the starting line-up for the first historic match of the tour against Hertfordshire at Croxley Green.
Unable to cope with the difficult and strange playing conditions the Proteas lost the match, 14-3.
However, the performances improved later with Benjamin playing from the pivot position in the victorious match against Oxfordshire, which the Cape Times described as the team’s “champagne performance” and the credible 7-7 draw against Buckinghamshire.
Following the tour, Benjamin lost his place in the Protea side to a young Errol Tobias whoi went on to become the first black player to represent the previously all-white Springboks.
Charles Benjamin is survived by his wife, Elizabeth, and son Weden.
Courtesy of SARU
