The Sunday Mail
Stephen “Stavo” Hunduza does not look like he was created with rugby in mind. A man standing at just 1,69 metres cannot be imagined to be a national rugby team utility back liner. Instead one would expect such a “small” man to have no room on the rugby pitch where the hustle and tussle favour lads of a more imposing physique. However, for the 22-year-old size is not everything.
A sharp mind is.
Hunduza is technically sound with his running angles, epitomises precision when taking down or going into contact with larger opponents and his ability to step and take a gap is immaculate.
He reigns as the first choice winger for the Sables and Cheetahs teams.
He is also a vital cog of the Harare Sports Club rugby juggernaut.
Hunduza, whose virtuoso clinched the game for Sportivo against Old Georgians a fortnight ago, is being touted as the next big thing in Zimbabwean rugby.
However, amid all the excitement, it is worth mentioning that rugby was not his sport of choice.
Just like other boys from the rough and tough suburb of Mbare, the multi- talented “Stavo” fancied himself as a soccer player.
“I got into rugby by chance,” he recalls.
“I never played rugby in primary school; I was a soccer player and had dreams of playing for the national team one day.
“When I enrolled for high school at Harare High, I realised that although I was good at football and had all the skill, my lack of size and strength hindered progress hence I decided to train with the rugby guys so that I improve my fitness levels.
“It was during one of those sessions that the rugby coach, Victor Pekani, walked up to me and said ‘you are born to play rugby, forget football’.
“Slowly I began to fall in love with the game and the journey has been an interesting one.”
Pekani, who is the Mbare Rugby Academy founder, helped Hunduza move to Churchill High School where he got exposed to more competitive schoolboy rugby.
He started off as a fullback after the coaches noticed his football-inspired kicking skills. Hunduza soon became one of Churchill’s key Bulldogs and was at the heart of the team that broke the school’s Prince Edward jinx.
PE had for long dominated the Bulldogs, but a team led by Hunduza reversed the trend in 2009.
By the time he left Churchill in 2010, it was certain that Hunduza was headed for Harare Sports Club where Churchill’s alumni have strong presence.
“When he joined us in 2011 I just thought here is another fast boy from my old school . . . I thought he was fragile and even when we trained I was a little soft on him as a rookie.
“However, my perception changed when things got really physical during matches. I realised he was tenacious and wasn’t afraid to get into contact as short and tiny as he was at the time . . . I quickly noticed that the boy had heart,” recalls Harare Sports Club lock Kudakwashe Chisepo.
A rookie, Hunduza posed a potent threat to the other Sportivo pint-sized players because of his ability to play all positions in the backline, all the way from the scrum-half to the full back.
The coaches tried him out at all positions and still do to this day. When it comes to specialised attack moves, his explosive take-off and height (which gives him a lower centre of gravity) comes into play.
In 2012 Hunduza was part of the dream team that lifted the Lion Lager National League Championship.
His efforts saw him being a nominee for rookie of the year and NRL player of the year awards. However, success at the awards ceremony came a year later when he scooped the top try scorer accolade.
After noticing his immense potential, the Zimbabwe Rugby Union handed the utility man central contract, making him one of the privileged few to get semi-professional status in the country.
Last year Hunduza made his national team debut after a massive rebellion by the senior players left the country in danger of failing to fulfil a World Cup qualifier against Madagascar.
Thrown into the deep end, Hunduza and other rookies held their own as the Sables beat Madagascar away from home. Early this year Hunduza was named in the IRB Sevens dream team after doing well for the Cheaters at the Hong Kong Sevens.
Although the Cheetahs failed to qualify for the later rounds of the competition the speedy Hunduza did enough to win the hearts of selectors in the three matches he featured in. He planted six tries in the three matches, including a hat-trick in the opening match against Barbados.
With his stock rising with each passing day, Hunduza is dreaming big.
“The game has given me a better life and I want to pursue every avenue that comes my way,” he concludes.
