As a 17-year-old, Shayne Bolton had a choice to make. A talented all-round sportsman in his school days, he had to pick between rugby and golf.
He already had his handicap down to scratch at the time and was considered to be very talented in both. Unsurprisingly for a young South African, Bolton chose rugby before he had to make another choice four years later.
Born and reared in Pretoria and schooled in the Hoërskool Eldoraigne, an Afrikaans co-ed in the Gauteng province, Bolton played for the Blue Bulls and was then given a two-year contract with the Cheetahs academy. On its completion, however, his deal was not extended.
Playing University rugby but without any apparent future in South African rugby, Connacht became aware that Bolton had an Irish grandmother, Noirín Stapleton from Blackrock in Dublin. The player was highly recommended by the province’s contacts.
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Many gems can easily slip through the net in South African rugby before being polished elsewhere. Bolton’s adaptation to his new life and career in Galway and Connacht weren’t helped by a succession of niggly soft-tissue injuries. He started just 10 games in his first three seasons, but the work with the Connacht strength and conditioning team paid off last season, when he started a dozen games and scored six tries.
At the midway point in a World Cup cycle, Bolton’s profile is not hugely dissimilar that of Mack Hansen four years ago; an uncapped Connacht winger from the southern hemisphere with Irish roots who had previously played centre or fullback (Hansen having also played at outhalf).
Granted, they’re very different types of players. Hansen is more of a multi-faceted playmaking winger with x-factor. Bolton has been successfully converted into a more straight-running, strong, powerful, quick winger. Though not the tallest, he is good in the air and has an eye for the try line.
He is clearly on Andy Farrell’s radar. Bolton scored two tries on his Irish debut in the 106-7 win over Portugal in the summer and was then brought to Chicago to train with the senior squad for two weeks.
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“I think the preparation is almost more important than the game itself,” says Bolton. “Obviously, we’ve lots of new detail or moves and stuff in the week before the game. Usually with the provinces, all your calls are kind of the same consistently throughout the year, whereas we just have a week now to get that detail, all the moves sorted, how you execute that on the pitch.”
Learning and executing details quickly is part of the challenge.
“I remember my first time coming in, [my] head was absolutely fried. So many new things to learn. I think it just comes with time, over the weeks you learn, you try and be around the boys a lot, trying to pick up on little small cues in language or language between the boys.
“I feel way more comfortable over the last couple of weeks. I know almost everyone now,” says Bolton, who admits he was “very nervous the first time I came in, just trying to be quiet and kind of sneak behind the radar. But now I’m bringing out my personality a bit more”.
Does having Blackrock origins earn him kudos with some of his squadmates?
“They don’t believe me when I say my family’s from Blackrock,” says Bolton laughing.
This week he has been re-routed to Leganés, where he will be part of the Ireland XV team to face Spain on Saturday, (kick-off 5pm local time/4pm Irish time, live on rugbypass).
“They’ve qualified for the World Cup,” Bolton notes. “They’re a very good team. It’s going to be a big game. I think it’s going to be very physical. And hopefully we can leave our mark on it.”
If Bolton does, it will be another upward step in his Irish graph.
“The weather is a challenge,” he says of living in Galway, but “great city to live, class, nothing to complain about”.
His family are aboard the journey too. His parents and grandfather all wore Connacht jerseys at the Bulls game in Pretoria two years ago, and his parents have been over to Galway, as well as one of his brothers.
His grandmother is “very proud“, he says, smiling.
“Sending me messages every game week.”
