Success Stories

Profiles of some of our graduates

Alex Nchele

“I started playing rugby around 2015 when Coach Roy came to our school. Before that, I played handball and did athletics. I’d never played before, but had seen rugby on TV. I was a bit afraid. Coach Roy told me I had potential and encouraged me to join the Maseru Warriors where I learned new skills. I moved from No. 8 to the wing for a game in South Africa. That was a big lesson, but I scored a try.

Coach Roy taught us a lot. He taught us about gender equality. He taught us how to protect ourselves from HIV, like wearing gloves when dressing a wound and that girls should not date old men. He taught us smoking was bad, that it can give you lung cancer and we shouldn’t smoke when we play sport, because our heart can beat twice as fast. He taught us that beer can damage your liver.

Rugby helps you in your life so much. Rugby helped me to focus at school. After training I would do my school work. I got good marks – better than my friends who didn’t play rugby.

I don’t drink or smoke, because I want to be healthy. At my town in Ha Tsolo, boys are acting like gangsters, sitting in bars. I might have joined them – there is nothing to keep you busy. Now I gym and I train.

Rugby players must be role models. I am a double orphan, but my younger sister is copying my style. She wants to come with me to training. I’ve told her what I learned about HIV, drugs, smoking and beer.”

“I've told my younger sister what I learned about HIV”

— Alex Nchele