How did South Africa find out about Rugby?

Answer 1

The Reverend George Ogilvie nicknamed by his school and University friend days as "Gog" , was born in 1826 in Wiltshire, England, and it is he that is credited with introducing Football to South Africa,. The game known as the Winchester rules was a mix of football and Rugby (more of less the same as as being palyed at the time Web Ellis ran with the ball). following his appointment as Headmaster of the Diocesan College at Rondenbosch, near Cape Town in 1861 and where he remained until 1885 - However, the game of Rugby football was also introduced at the same time by British service men. The two games ran side by side with rugby actually failing to really catch on that is until the arrival in Cape Town of Mr William H. Milton in 1878 who turned the tide in favour of rugby. Milton, who had played for England only a few years earlier (in 1874 and 1875), joined the Villagers club and started playing and preaching the rugby code. By the end of that year the football playing fraternity in Cape Town had all but abandoned the Winchester game in favour of the Rugby football. variety