South Africa national rugby union team

The Springboks, Bokke or amaBokoboko are the South African national rugby union team. The Springboks, as they are commonly referred to, compete in the Tri Nations Series alongside the New Zealand All Blacks and Australia. Although they did not compete in the first two Rugby World Cups due to sports boycotts of South Africa, they did make their debut in the 1995 World Cup, hosting it as well. They defeated the All Blacks in the final, which is now remembered as one of the greatest moments in South Africa's sporting history.

History

Early years

When Canon George Ogilvie became headmaster of Diocesan College in Cape Town in 1861, he introduced the game of football, as played at Winchester School. This version of football, which included handling, is seen as the beginnings of rugby in South Africa.

The first match in South Africa took place between the "Officers of the Army" and the "Gentlemen of the Civil Service" at Green Point in Cape Town in 1862 and ended as a 0-0 draw. The first governing body of the sport - England’s Rugby Football Union (RFU) - was founded in 1871 and thereafter Rugby’s rules held sway.

British colonists helped spread the game through the Eastern Cape, Natal and along the gold and diamond routes to Kimberley and Johannesburg. British troops would also play a key role in spreading the game throughout the country. Various clubs were formed but Hamilton RFC in Cape Town probably has the strongest claim at being the first, though this is disputed by Villagers RFC. In 1883 the game was strong enough in the Western Cape for the Western Province Rugby Football Union to be formed; Griqualand West followed in 1886; Eastern Province in 1888 and in 1889 the South African Rugby Football Union was founded.

The first ever British Lions tour took place in 1891 with the trip financially underwritten by Cecil Rhodes and President Kruger of the Transvaal Republic. These were the first representative games played by South African sides, who were still learning the game. The tourists played and won a total of twenty matches, conceding only one try in the process. Three games were played against regional sides were considered tests (South Africa did not exist as a political unit in 1891). In a notable event of the tour, the British side presented the Currie Cup to Griqualand West, the province they thought produced the best performance on the tour.

The Lions' success continued in 1896, they played one extra match on this tour, to make a total of 21 games. The Lions won three out of the four tests against South Africa with three games won out of the four played. The improvement in South African play from 1891 was marked, particularly in their impressive forwards, and their first test win in the final game was a pointer to the future. For the first time South Africa had worn myrtle green shirts, borrowed by captain, Barry Heatlie, from his Old Diocesian club. Rugby was given a huge boost by the early Lions tours which created great interest in the South African press.

Rugby was well suited to the lifestyle of the Afrikaners and it became so popular that in 1902 there was a temporary ceasefire in the Second Boer War so that a rugby game could be played between British and Boer forces. The game had spread amongst the Afrikaner population through POW games in the Boer War, and afterwards Stellenbosch University became a training camp for future players and rugby leaders.

In 1903 the Lions lost a series for the first time in South Africa, drawing the opening two tests before losing the last 8-0. In all they won just 11 of their 22 tour games. In contrast South Africa would not lose another series - home or away - until 1956. In the final test South Africa wore the green Old Diocesan shirts that had brought them luck in their 1896 win. The jersey was thereafter adopted as the official team kit.

Springboks

Paul Roos was the captain of the first Springbok team. The first tour of Britain took place in 1906/7 and took in 29 matches. England managed to draw with them, but Scotland was the only one of the home unions to gain a victory. It was during this tour that the nickname, Springboks, was first used. At an impromtu meeting, the tour manager, officials and Paul Roos invented the nickname 'Springbok' to prevent the British press from inventing their own nickname. Roos told to the newspaper reporters that they were to call the team 'De Springbokken', the Daily Mail then printed an article referring to the 'Springboks'. The team thereafter wore blazers with a springbok on the left breast pocket. The trip helped heal wounds after the Boer War and instilled a sense of national pride in the South Africans.

The South Africans crossed the channel to play an unofficial match against a 'France' team drawn from the two Parisian clubs: Stade Français and Racing Club de France. The official France team were in England at the time. The Springboks scored 13 tries in winning 55-6.

The 1910 Lions tour of South Africa was the first to included representatives of all four home unions. The team performed moderately against the non-test parties, claiming victories in just over half their matches. The tourists won just one of their three tests.

The Boks second European tour took place in 1912/13. They beat the four Home nations to earn their first Grand Slam and also went on to defeat France. the side toured Britain in 1906 that they became known as the Springboks.

Inter war

The 1924 Lions were ravaged by injuries and let down by poor kicking. The sorry tour record left them with only nine wins from 21 games, including defeat in all four tests (a game against the Western Province had test status). Despite this it was agreed that it had been a fantastic test series with some thrilling rugby.

The Springboks and the All Blacks started a famous rivalry in 1921, the Springboks' tour of New Zealand was tense and competitive, the test series finishing all square. The All Blacks first toured South Africa in 1928, the test series again finishing level. In 1937, South Africa broke the deadlock with a series win in New Zealand (and also Australia), and it was not until 1996, under Sean Fitzpatrick's captaincy, that New Zealand finally won its first series in the Republic.

The Springbok tourists of 1931-2 were an unloved team. They had a jumbo pack and a kicking fly-half in captain Benny Osler. They steamrollered the opposition, winning their second Grand Slam. A strong Welsh side were beaten 8-3 at St Helen's with Danie Craven enjoying a superb debut at scrum-half.

The Lions toured South Africa again in 1938, winning more than half of their normal matches. The first two tests were easily claimed by the Springboks, but the tourists recorded a surprise win in the third and last. It was the first Lions win in South Africa since 1910.

Post War Era

The team that many consider to be the finest Springbok side to tour swept the board in 1951/52 winning the Grand Slam whilst playing exciting rugby. Danie Craven was coach and Hennie Muller took over the captaincy after Basil Kenyon suffered a serious eye injury. They also beat France as they won 30 of 31 matches on tour.

The 1955 Lions tour to South Africa won 19 and drew 1 from the 25 fixtures. The four-test series ended in a drawn series. In 1956 under the captaincy of Bob Duff and through the surprise selection of Waikato player Don Clarke (nicknamed 'the Boot') who kicked the decisive penalties in the final games, New Zealand won its first ever series over the Springboks.

The last Springbok Grand Slam came in 1960/61 when Avril Malan's side beat all four Home unions on a four-month, 34-game sweep through Europe. This was the last time the Boks managed the feat, failing in 1969/70, 1998, and 2004. They were a reactionary side, reflecting a nation still in shock from their 1956 series defeat in New Zealand. They played a ruthless, forward-oriented game; intimidation was a key part of their game, with opposition players suffering a string of controversial injuries. The Boks, however, lost their final game 6-0 against the Barbarians in Cardiff, when perhaps the best Barbarians' pack ever played an uncharacteristically pragmatic game.

The 1962 tour to South Africa saw the Lions win 16 of their 25 games, but did not fair well in the tests losing all three. A protest movement against the 1960 New Zealand tour of South Africa was unsuccessful at stopping the tour but the New Zealand Rugby Union decided to cancel the proposed 1967 tour when the South African government refused to allow Maori players to play in the All Black team. Following this cancellation, the South African government agreed to treat Maoris in the team and Maori spectators as "honorary whites".

The 1968 Lions tour of South Africa saw the Lions win 15 of their 16 provincinal matches, but the team actually lost three tests against the Springboks and drew one. A South African rugby tour of Britain and Ireland in 1969 was greeted with large demonstrations wherever they went and matches had to be played behind barbed wire fences. A new spirit and confidence had developed in Home nations rugby and the tourists lost two of their seven games in Wales, against Newport and a composite side from Gwent. Wales nearly claimed their first win against the Springboks; the game ended 6-6.

In June-July 1970 the All Blacks toured South Africa, the Springboks won the test series 3-1. The 1973 Springbok tour of New Zealand was cancelled by the Prime Minister of New Zealand. However the 1976 All-Blacks tour of South Africa went ahead and again the Springboks won by three tests to one. Massive anti-apartheid demonstrations greeted the South African rugby tour of Australia in 1971. The South African team had to be transported in Australian Air Force planes as the trade unions refused to service planes or trains transporting them. The Springboks’ tour began with matches in Perth, then Adelaide and Melbourne.

The Lions team toured South Africa in 1974 and went through 22 games unbeaten, and triumphed 3-0 (with one drawn) in the test series. The management of the Lions concluded that the Springboks dominated their opponents with physical aggression. The Lions decided "to get their retaliation in first" with the infamous '99 call'. The idea was that a South African referee would be unlikely to send off all of the Lions if they all retaliated against "blatant thuggery". At the battle of Boet Erasmus Stadium, one of the most violent in rugby history, there is famous video footage of JPR Williams running over half of the pitch and launching himself at van Heerden after such a call.

After public opposition and international representations, the French Government stopped the 1979 South African tour of France and announced that it was inappropriate for South African teams to tour France. It also stopped a French tour of South Africa in 1983. In the United States, a South African tour in 1981 was greeted by mass demonstrations, which put an end to similar tours.

The Lions toured South Africa in 1980. The team completed a flawless non-test record, winning 14 out of 14 non-test matches on the tour. The Lions did however lose the first three tests to winning the last one, though the series had already been won by the Springboks. In 1977 the Commonwealth signed a document called the Gleneagles Agreement, which had the aim of discouraging sporting contact with South Africa, despite this the infamous 1981 tour of New Zealand went ahead. This was the last official tour until the end of apartheid. In 1983 the new Labour Government, led by David Lane, took active steps to prevent sports exchanges with South Africa.

In 1985, a planned All Black tour of South Africa was stopped by the New Zealand High Court An unofficial tour did take place in 1986 by a team including some but not the majority of All Blacks players. These were known outside South Africa as the Cavaliers, but advertised inside the Republic as the All Blacks.

Post apartheid

Until the 1990s the Springboks had a positive win record against every nation they played. After the Springboks were readmitted to international rugby following the demise of apartheid, they initially struggled to return to their previous high standards. The newly elected ANC government suggested that the Springbok nickname and emblem should be replaced with 'Proteas' after the national flower of South Africa. For many South Africans the springbok had come to symbolise apartheid; special dispensation was given to carry on using the springbok emblem after the intervention by Nelson Mandela ahead of the 1995 Rugby World Cup.

There was a remarkable surge of support for the Springboks amongst the white and black communities in the lead-up to the 1995 Rugby World Cup. This was the first major event to be held in the Rainbow Nation, and the nation got behind the 'one team, one country' slogan. By the time they hosted the 1995 World Cup, they were one of the favourites winning an epic final against a debilitated New Zealand 15-12. The New Zealanders were struck down by a virulent food poisoning the day before the fixture and suspicions that this had been done deliberately by the South African rugby authorities continue to this day. . SARFU President Louis Luyt caused controversy at the post-match dinner by declaring that the Springboks would have won the previous two World Cups if they had been allowed to compete. The day after the World Cup victory, the Xhosa word for Springbok, "Amabokoboko!" appeared as the headline of the Sowetan newspaper sports page.

A series of crises followed in the period 1995-7 as it became clear that South African rugby was an unreformed element of the new Rainbow Nation. Allied to this was an on-field slump that saw South African sides struggle in the new Super 12 and Tri Nations competitions, and against the 1997 Lions who completed the tour only losing two games in total. The Lions won the test series two games to one.

Coach Andre Markgraaff was sacked in 1997 and replaced by Nick Mallett. In 1998 under new captain Gary Teichmann they went on a record winning streak, winning 17 consecutive tests, including the 1998 Tri Nations Series, before an exhausted team lost to England at the end of a long tour. The Springboks entered the 1999 Rugby World Cup with little hope. Reverting to a kicking game and forward strength, they showed they were still a force to be reckoned with and they only went out to eventual champions Australia after a tense semi-final at Twickenham.

2002/3 was their worst ever season, seeing them lose by record margins to France, England, Scotland and New Zealand, defeating Argentina by only one point, and being easily dispatched in the quarter finals of the 2003 World Cup.

The buildup to the Boks' 2003 World Cup campaign was tumultuous. During a pre-World Cup training camp, there was a highly publicized dispute between Geo Cronjé (an Afrikaner) and Quinton Davids (a coloured). Both were dropped from the team, and Cronjé was called before a tribunal to answer charges that his actions in the dispute were racially motivated. (Cronjé was eventually cleared.) Later, the Boks were sent to a military-style boot camp in the South African bush called Kamp Staaldraad (literal English translation "Camp Steel-wire", idiomatically "Camp Barbed Wire"). When details of the events at Kamp Staaldraad leaked, most South African rugby supporters reacted in outrage.

After the World Cup debacle, Boks coach Rudolph Straeuli was under fire, not only because of the team's poor results, but because of his role in organizing Kamp Staaldraad. He eventually resigned, and in February 2004, Jake White was named as the Boks' new coach. He had previously coached the Springboks under-21 side, which won the inaugural U21 Rugby World Cup in 2002 under his direction.

The Boks then proceeded to prove to the rugby world that they were ready to return to past greatness, starting with a sweep of Ireland in a two-Test series and a win over Wales during their opponents' June 2004 tours of the Southern Hemisphere. Next came a pulsating win in the most closely-contested Tri Nations Series in history. In November 2004, they went on an ambitious "Grand Slam" tour of the Home Nations. The Boks lost decisively to England, lost a controversial decision to Ireland, won a hard-fought match with Wales, and won comfortably over Scotland. While the tour did not live up to the Boks' original aspirations, it nonetheless proved that the Boks had awakened from their slumber of the past few years.

Their resurgence was honored at the end of their tour with a sweep of the major IRB awards. The Boks were named IRB World Team of the Year, White was named IRB World Coach of the Year, and young flanker Schalk Burger was named IRB World Player of the Year.

Current squad

Famous players

Past

Present

External links

References

National rugby union teams | Rugby union in South Africa

Équipe d'Afrique du Sud de rugby à XV | Nazionale di rugby sudafricana | Sør-Afrikas herrelandslag i rugby union

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