Damian Willemse floors the accelerator, sending the Audi TT—in all its 228-horsepower, four-cylinder glory—vaulting towards the glimmering shore ahead of us. It’s one of those dog days in Greenpoint. The sun speckling churning tides, waves swelling and crashing with a brilliant foam. Damian smiles. He’s behind the wheel of a car he could only dream about as a child. The Springbok rugby player has just wrapped his first-ever cover shoot. He suffered a serious concussion just two weeks earlier, but he’s made a full recovery. He’s match fit (really fit) and he’s got another game on the horizon. Damian is hungry to prove himself.
The 24-year-old is in his element.
The Grind
We pull up to the area’s Virgin Active where the flyhalf (fullback or inside centre—depending on the colours he’s wearing) is a regular. He gets a warm greeting; he’s lost his card, but the gates are open—no questions asked. Around him, there are looks of recognition. The rhythmic grunts, clinking metal plates and thrum of treadmills were punctuated by a “Hey Damian” or “You ready for this weekend, hey?” here and there. In South Africa, after all, the Springboks are practically royalty.
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“I used to lie in bed just picturing myself being a professional rugby player,” says Damian Willemse. Sipping on a takeaway coffee cup. We’re sitting outside on the gym’s patio area, a gentle ocean breeze barely disturbing the sand of a beach volleyball court beneath us. “You know, I didn’t have any doubts. I really believed that if I put my mind to it, put the work in, it would all work out.”
Damian grew up in Strand, a town wedged between Somerset West and Gordon’s Bay. And despite having a similar proximity to the ocean as our current surroundings, living in the area is a far cry from Greenpoint’s affluence and opulence. In Damian’s own words, it’s a tough upbringing.
“There are people misusing and abusing drugs and alcohol,” he says. “But we’re also a passionate community, we love sport, we live and breathe for the weekend when we can all sit down and watch whatever—rugby, cricket… it can even be the X Games.”
His parents juggled shifts at the factory, putting in long hours to make sure Damian and his siblings had what they needed. But nothing, not even food, was a guarantee. It taught the rugby player never to take anything for granted, and watching his parents keep at it helped instill a relentless work ethic, something he credits much—if not all—of his success.
“My parents, my grandmothers who helped raise me, they were setting the right kind of example,” he says. “Their lives were tough, but they never stopped grinding.”
Despite their financial struggles, there was something that wasn’t in short supply: raw talent. From an early age, Damian excelled on the pitch. Already then, signs of the player he was to become were starting to show. He was versatile, energetic and the ultimate team player. Some pundits have nicknamed him “Mr. Reliable”, but the moniker doesn’t really do justice to his presence on the field. Capable of deceiving defences, tipping the scales from a failed attack into a scoring opportunity, there’s always a sense of excitement when the athlete has the ball in his hands.
It was this potential that helped Damian Willemse snag a scholarship at the fabled Paul Roos Gymnasium, a Stellenbosch school renowned for producing some of the country’s best players. Andres Bekker, Schalk Brits, Francois Hougaard, Josh Strauss, Herschel Jantjies—the list goes on.
There was massive pressure on Damian to perform, especially since his brother Ramone Samuels was already showing signs of becoming a star. The pair would go on to win the Currie Cup together as part of the Western Province side in 2017.
“I knew I was doing this for my family, that if I could make this happen [going pro], I could give myself and them all a better future,” he says.
As is cliché for future greats, Damian’s rise was meteoric. He represented Western Province as part of the Under-16 side. Helping them secure three big wins and scoring a try in the final against the Blue Bulls. He played as part of the dominant South Africa school squad in two international series. Eventually, he landed starting spots with the Saracens, Western Province and the Stormers, inking an unprecedented 5-year contract with the latter in September last year. He was also named a finalist for the SA Players’ Player of the Year award.
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To the public eye, it may seem like Damian Willemse appeared out of nowhere; but he can track his climb to the top with millions of grueling steps. There were countless mornings waking up at 4am to train, putting in extra graft to supplement his sessions with the team. He was robbed on the train three times on his way to games. And if he couldn’t afford a spot on a carriage, he’d have to rely on his friends to give him a lift.
“It was all part of the journey,” he says, looking at his brand-new gun-metal Audi in the gym’s parking lot. “I knew that I would have to work hard, and I just kept that in mind that putting in the hours was non-negotiable.”
He pauses. “Look, there were definitely guys around me that were way more talented than me. Why did I make it? Why me? I ask myself that often, and all I can think is it just comes down to my mindset.”
The Process
Damian hasn’t been without his critics. In 2020, he was switching between playing flyhalf for the Stormers and putting in stints as a fullback on the national side. He earned six caps for the Springboks, but online fans became disillusioned.
“People still talking up Damian Willemse. I’ve never seen anyone in any sport given more chance than him,” wrote one user on Twitter. “[He’s] having the worst game of his life,” chimed in another.
While many rose to his defense, including South Africa’s assistant coach Deon Davids who was confident the player had the ability to “win you games”, public opinion didn’t seem to be in Damian’s favour.
The rugby player was confused: “Sure, it was a dip, but I wasn’t playing bad rugby. I knew, given time, I was so close to locking everything in place.”
He had to learn to shut out the commentary and home in on developing his skills. If there were weak links in his performance, he would put in extra time to shore up these gaps. He focused and he improved—before long opinion shifted back into the green.
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“So I go and prove myself, and all of sudden everyone is like: ‘Wow, how is he so good?’,” he laughs. “It didn’t happen out of nowhere. While you guys were trashing me, I put hours and hours to get to this point.”
Building this kind of mental grit also required those grueling psychological reps that only happen with introspection. While Damian Willemse is recognized for his calm and friendly demeanor on the pitch, he’s also doing a lot of heavy lifting behind the scenes.
“I used to be terrible after a bad match,” he admits. “I wouldn’t talk to anyone, not even my parents. Everyone has invested so much in me, and if my performance was bad, I could only think of how I’ve disappointed them.”
Call it perfectionism, as Damian does, or call it being a young guy under extreme pressure, but one thing was clear: this type of thought process was only going to hurt him in the long run. He turned his attention away from the result and put his performance under the microscope. First, he asks himself: what is under his control? Was his work rate low? Was his stamina lacking? Did he screw up his recovery? Then, he asks: how can he improve on these aspects? And, finally, what’s his plan for the week ahead? Now, execute.
“I try to be objective now because focusing on the loss gets you nowhere,” he says. “It’s not about ‘how’ we lost, but ‘why’.”
The Reward
When Damian needs to clear his head, he’ll head to the beach or soak up the sights from his home in Gardens. Nature has always helped him get perspective, to get a break from the all-day grind that’s necessary to perform at the highest level. He’s also surfing, joining Sevens rugby star Seabelo Senatla for some hanging ten and avid wave chasing.
Watching him in front of the camera during the cover shoot on the grounds of the Hamilton Rugby Club, he’s a man at peace, smiling easily as he clambers the bleachers. In the distance, against the backdrop of Signal Hill, middle school students square off in a heated rugby match, their shouts and cries carried by the salt-heavy ocean breeze. Among them may be another Damian in the making, someone putting their fate in the hands of this often unforgiving sport.
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Despite his relaxed demeanour, Damian still has plenty on his plate. Outside of rugby, he’s studying for a commerce degree at Milpark, writing papers and sitting exams between big matches. It reflects his ethos, which emphasises that if you linger too long, you’ll fall behind.
“I’m thinking about my future, too,” he says. “Right now, rugby is everything, but it’s temporary. What will I do when I can’t play anymore?”
We jump back into his car and careen towards the coastline. The Audi TT has barely cracked 100km on the meter. It’s a fresh ride. A symbol for the many miles left to come for both itself and the prodigy at the wheel.
*Damian Willemse was profiled as part of a feature that appeared in the Nov/Dec 2023 issue of Men’s Health SA
