Did you hear about the Blue Bulls rugby player who turned into an axe murderer? And did you hear about the Kenyan world record holder who could have been the Olympic favourite if she hadn’t been murdered? Dark Side of Glory is a true crime documentary series exploring shocking murder cases within the world of sports. The docuseries was directed by Arianna Perretta, who won Best Documentary at the 2023 Broadcast Digital Awards for The Footballer, His Wife and the Crash and was nominated for a 2024 True Crime Award for Football Fraudster . ‘The Durban Axe Murderer: The Rugby Killer’ – Joseph Ntshongwana The first episode, The Durban Axe Murderer: The Rugby Killer , is a compelling 76-minute documentary that delves into the story of Joseph Ntshongwana , a former South African U21 and Blue Bulls rugby player from 1998 to 2001.
A decade later, he was arrested for the brutal killing of four men with an axe and injuring two others. Ntshongwana claimed he was avenging his daughter’s gang rape and HIV infection, but investigations revealed he had no children. Former Blue Bulls teammate McNeil Hendricks reflects, “There’s a saying that goes, ‘He couldn’t hurt a fly.
’ It’s hard to believe that Joseph Ntshongwana, as we knew him, had committed such horrific acts.” The episode features interviews with individuals such as Captain Rico Naidoo, Colonels Jason McGray and Ze-Ev Krein, Detective Marius Van Der Looy, former Head Profiler at the South African Police Servic.