Luke Watson

His father had joined the African National Congress in 1978 and had helped to Hide cadres from the secret police, who burnt down his home in 1986 as well as his business.

Luke Watson was ostracized by other students and someone wrote "Kill the Watsons" on his desk.

When his father was imprisoned his mother, Tracey, hid this from him.

He learnt about racism and apartheid from his father, and wanted to represent the change that his father had worked for.

Watson played rugby at Grey High School where he was coached from Grade 10 onwards by Mike Howe.

Howe first switched Watson from eighthman to openside flank.

Later Howe favourably remembered Watson's ball-fetching skills from rucks and his motivational abilities, but said that at the time his organisational skills "let him down".

In Grade 12 Watson captained Grey High's First XV.

He organized a strike of the team after objections were raised that he had abused his position as captain.

During his final year of high school Watson told his principal, Roy Simpson, that he was resigning as prefect.

Some claim that Watson's resignation was due to his loyalty to "the wrong crowd", while his father maintained it was because the younger Watson had objected to "autocratic leadership" at the school.

Despite his actions, Watson was given the Headmaster's Leadership award that year.

Luke Asher Watson (born 26 October 1983 in Port Elizabeth) is a South African former rugby union footballer who can play at flank or eighthman.

With his cousin, Daniel, Luke Watson represented the Eastern Province XV at the 2000 Craven Week.

Aged 16, he scored a try in their 21-all draw against Griqualand-West, and was in the Eastern Province schools team that played in a curtain raiser for the test between South Africa and Canada on 10 June.

Watson was selected for the South African Academy side in 2000 that beat the South African Schools side that year.

He has represented and captained the South African Schools rugby team (2001), South Africa's under-19 (2002) and under-21 (2004) teams, as well as the Springbok Sevens team (2001).

Watson has also captained both the Western Province and the Super Rugby Stormers.

He most recently played for the.

In July 2001 he was back at the Craven Week where he impressed in Eastern Province's 15–17 loss against a Blue Bulls side.

He was invited to a training camp in March 2001 but was not selected for the national under-19 team that participated in the Junior World Championship in Santiago, Chile.

In 2001 Watson was chosen as captain of the South African Schools team that played the French under-18 team twice.

The SA Schools side, which included Bismarck du Plessis and Derick Hougaard won the first match in Cape Town 36–15.

In the second clash at Loftus Versfeld, which was drawn 23–23, Watson "played well" and scored a try.

Watson has been controversial due to his relationship with then-national coach Jake White, political interference in his selection for the 2007 Springbok team, interaction with the squad afterwards, and his comments in a speech.

He regretted attending the Springbok training camp in 2007, knowing that neither he, the squad, nor White wanted him to be there.

Luke Watson is the son of anti-apartheid activist Daniel "Cheeky" Watson, who was also a rugby player of national standard in his youth.

Watson comes from a family traditionally strongly committed to Christianity.

His grandfather, Daniel John Watson, was a Pentecostal lay preacher and transmitted Christian values to Luke's father while Cheeky was growing up in Grahamstown.

Luke Watson has openly admitted to being a committed Christian who wanted to become a minister at the age of 17, and who believes that doing God's work is to help those on the margins.

He sports four religious tattoos on his body, including a cross on his right biceps and the reference "Habakkuk 3:17" on his left arm.

While living in Cape Town he fed homeless persons three times a week and let them shower at his home.

Watson says that he prays continuously while on the field, asking God " 'where the gaps are, where the weaknesses are in defence and help me be in the right place' ".

Yet he does not believe in being judgmental, and describes himself as " 'very tentative to preach too quickly' ".

While attending Grey Junior School in Port Elizabeth Luke realized, at the age of 7, that because they associated with blacks and had supported the anti-apartheid struggle, his family was different from other white South Africans.

Watson told a public gathering on 3 October 2008 that he had to stop himself from vomiting when he wore the Springbok jersey, and referred to black players such as Zola Yeye who during apartheid had been excluded from national selection.

The media suggested that Watson had also denigrated Afrikaner players and rugby officials in a question and answer session, although the transcript of the speech does not bear this out.

Consequently, some South African rugby supporters and players (mostly Afrikaners) launched verbal attacks against Watson (often vehement and personal), Afrikaner rights groups like the Afrikanerbond sought his exclusion from rugby, and some spectators vocally expressed their disapproval whenever he played in South Africa.

Watson has denied that he is against Afrikaners, pointing out that not only does he oppose all forms of discrimination but that he also has Afrikaner ancestors.

He conceded in 2010 that he had been used as "a political pawn" and that he would have done things differently if he had the chance to do them over.