The Sunday Mail
Tinashe Kusema
Deputy Sports Editor
WHAT IS in a name, identity or culture?
Well, when it comes to Zimbabwe senior rugby team loose-head prop Doug Juszczyk, his last name has been a tongue-twister for locals, including the media.
Some have chosen the easy way out by simply calling him “Juice card”.
The nickname is partly because of the unforgettable impression the New Zealand-based rugby player made on his debut earlier this month, and mostly due to his surname, which is pronounced “You sh-check.”
“My last name is Polish from my grandparents’ side, and that’s probably why it’s a bit of a tongue-twister,” said the 31-year-old.
“However, both my parents were born here in Zimbabwe, and I actually grew up in Centenary. I attended Barwick Primary School here in Zimbabwe and then we moved to New Zealand where I finished my high school and university,” he said.
Juszczyk is still a bit sceptical about the moniker “Juice card”, but does see the humour in it.
“I don’t mind the nickname, but it’s not exactly how it’s pronounced.
“I don’t know if there is any need endorsing anything,” he said.
Nicknames aside, he has been one of the feel-good stories of the resurgence of the Zimbabwe Sables this year.
It is often said you only get one chance to make a first impression, and the big forward made his count. For the big man, who weighs at 199kg and is 1,89cm tall, the Sables call-up was a dream come true and it saved him from calling it quits.
Having moved to New Zealand at the age of 14, the prop found the going tough at first, largely due to his size.
“I struggled with rugby at high school in New Zealand, mostly because of the fact that the other kids were always a bit bigger than I was. I was kind of a late bloomer, and didn’t really start growing until I was into my late twenties.”
Still, despite the lack of size, he persevered.
Juszczyk ended up playing for New Zealand universities in 2019. He recently played some matches for the reserve side of his province, Manawatu. He captained Massey University to Hankin Shield glory in 2016, on top of leading the Manawatu development side in later years, winning awards in the process.
Apart from turning out for the development team of Super Rugby franchise Hurricanes, he played in Belgium, Australia and Malaysia.
Despite all this, he contemplated throwing in the towel a couple of times.
“Over the years, I have come across a lot of trials and tribulations, where I thought I should have been picked by better teams. There were actually a lot of times I could have quit, but I didn’t.
“Last year, I actually came very close to doing so,” he said. As it turns out, it was actually an Instagram message from Sables team manager Jason Maritz which gave him the drive to push on.
“I think it was in July last year that I got a message from Jason (Maritz). He explained who he was, informed me that the Zimbabwe Sables set-up were extending the database, and then let me know that they would be watching my games,” he said.
The call-up did come and the forward impressed on debut, scoring two tries during Zimbabwe’s 31-8 victory over Zambia at the Harare Sports Club’s Machinery Exchange Stadium last month.
His second game, however, did not go so well.
Juszczyk could only play one half before he fell ill and found himself at death’s doorstep.
“In that first game, having the opportunity to run the ball the way that I did was absolutely fantastic.
“Emotions really got to me and it was one of the best moments of my life.
“The second game started off fine and then about 10 to 15 minutes into the game, I started feeling a little weird.
“By half-time, my body, face and ears had swelled up.
“I also felt very itchy all over.
“I tried to play on for a few more minutes and then it got to the point that I could not even see anything,” he said.
He was then taken off and subsequently went into anaphylactic shock (an allergic reaction).
Lucky for him, the medical team acted fast and gave him an adrenaline shot that literally saved his life.
He spent four days in hospital but has now been certified fit again.
He is part of the Sables squad expected to kick-start Zimbabwe’s bid for a place at the 2023 World Cup by playing in the African edition of the qualifiers.
