Blindside

Blindside covers the 1974 boycott-breaking tour of South Africa by the British rugby team the Lions. In the mid-1970’s the sports boycotts of South Africa were ramping up overseas. Yet in the country itself, sport was seen as sacrosanct, something removed from the political process. Many relatively enlightened white South Africans rejected the cruelty and oppression of apartheid, yet still supported the Springboks. In interviews Dugald MacDonald, a Springbok rugby player, looks back at the violent protest at Newlands rugby ground. His meeting with a fellow student years later proves to be a life-changing experience. This personal documentary underscores the hold which sport, particularly rugby, had on white South Africans. The sports boycott ultimately proved to be a powerful tool in helping to dismantle apartheid.