Former players: Jeff Tigere
Blood, sweat and tears. These three are nothing new to Jeff Tigere whose story is a testimony that hard work pays off. His “work ethic, discipline and focus “have always landed him the top spot in his endeavors making him one of Zimbabwe’s sporting icons.
Jeff was born, bred and one can say even buttered in Zimbabwe. His story starts in the small rural town where he was born to the lucky couple. He spent the early parts of his primary education at Hillside Primary school however after the untimely passing of his father he had to move to Gweru where he learnt at Cecil John Rhodes Primary School. In 1987, Jeff had to change schools again but lucky this time he moved to BG Primary school in Bulawayo where he would go on to find the love of his life at first bounce.
In 1988, remained in the City of Kings and Queens where he attended Founders High School. During his time at Founders his newly found love for basketball would grow immensely and through his hard work and commitment his skills grew immensely too. This saw him get his first team cap in just form 2 whilst most his age mates were still learning how to dribble. Jeff also takes pride in being “one of the key players that helped Founders claim the National Schools Championship.”
His efforts did not go unnoticed. That same year Jeff got the attention of numerous basketball clubs in the province. Later that year he would go on to join Highlanders where he developed his talent. In 1993 he left the Highlanders and joined the Memphis. His stay there was short-lived though as he started getting attracted to a newly founded club, the Giants, which his friends were playing for.
“I just wanted to play with my friends at the Giants, after my talk with Hilton “Mendy” Mendelsohn, the then Giants coach in 1995, I knew it was the perfect place for me to nurture my talent.”
Jeff’s time at the club surely turned him from a boy into a man. Firstly, his basketball skills improved greatly with the help of Mendy. As a result, the 6’1ft playmaker was called up for provincial duty for the first time in his career. The club also began to assert dominance in the provincially as it won the Mat. Land trophy three times in a role and even nationally as it won the Sprite National Championship in 1998 all thanks to his effort and many others.
During off season in 1997 Jeff made a decision to join to Join the Old Miltonians rugby club. It did not take much time for the ambitious lad to force his way into the club’s starting line up as a prop. As Jeff’s skills improved, it became evident that he was a born 7 because of his speed, ball carrying ability and even his ball handling skills. One would need to call Jeff a magician in order to explain how he was able to juggle winning multiple trophies with Giant whilst also dominating in rugby. The star humbly say it was a no brainer for him due to the different timing of the seasons. “It was very easy. In winter you would find me on the field and in summer I would be on the court.”
It was no surprise that the tall open side flanker soon caught the eyes of national scouts after a few months of playing the sport. In 1998 he was finally called up for national duty. He would go on to get his first cap that same year against …. setting his ruby career in the right direction.
On the court Jeff continued to shine with Giants until 2000 when he joined Abundant Life Tabernacle (ALCC). At this stage the flanker was having second thoughts about his future in basketball as he began to get numerous deals from international rugby clubs. In 2002 he moved to Germany to play for the Rudergesellschaft Heidelberg (RGH) rugby club. Against the odds Jeff still managed to come and play for ALCC during the rugby off season in 2003 as he had done all along.
Upon returning to Germany, Jeff was met by the biggest hiccup of his career. “I was told my sporting career was over.” In deed it looked that way. Jeff had dislocated his hip during match and it was clear he was not going to be returning into action anytime soon. During these dark times, Tigere took a sporting Job because of the admiration he had to work with young people just as Mendy did.
“From what Mendy did with Giants, I got a burning desire to help younger players too.”
Little did Jeff know that this passion would be his breakthrough. A wise man once said “Where there is a will there is a way.” During training sessions with the kids, he would often play touch rugby, against the doctor’s advice though, and he was just doing fine. Being the ambitious person that he is, Jeff continued to train behind the scenes and soon he made it back into the club’s lineup after being out for 10 months. Unfortunately, Jeff could not regain the momentum he had on the court. As a result, he had to put his professional basketball career to bed.
From there on Jeff had a rosy rugby career. He would go on to qualify for the 7’s world cup with the Sables and be key player the squad which is often said to be the best Sables team there ever was. In 2009 he played his last game for the Sables retiring with a total of 64 caps for both 7’s and 15’s.
After diapering from the international scene, he continued to play for his German club, RGH, until 2017 when he final hung the boots after helping his club achieve 5 championships in 7’s and 2 in 15’s.
Upon retirement, Jeff started doing what Mendy had inspired him to do. “I started coaching rugby here in Germany.” He assumed the role of RGH’s assistant coach before taking over as head coach in 2018. In 2019 he then became the development coach of the same club. His coaching career has just been as rosy as his early day. Bagging 5 championships in 7’s and 2 in 15 aside. Tigere believes that Zimbabwe has a lot of potential to dominate both in basketball and in rugby. Then why is this potential left unexplored?
