This exercise below covers the Springbok rugby period from world rugby readmission in 1992 until present day. It started out as an attempt to work out the number of schoolboys in any given year that would go on be capped at Springbok level, based on historical data. As it evolved, it provided a little more information and eventually became less appropriate to title as a purely school rugby related post. So for a really useful and easy to remember non-rocket scientist type answer to the schoolboy poser, rather look at this blog: http://schoolboyrugby.co.za/blog/?p=1629 measuring the time and caps between the old enforcer Bakkies Botha and the new kid on the block Eben Etzebeth.
One of the things I find weird is that even today Springbok caps are presented to tour players that will probably never ever play in a test match. Since 1992 (21 seasons), there has been 50 such “Springboks”. This season alone, coach Heyneke Meyer has no fewer than eight non-test match Springboks out of the total 16 new caps that he has handed out. However this being Meyer’s first and possibly not his last season in charge, it is likely that the figure of eight will half itself when the inevitable happens and the likes of Frans Malherbe, Arno Botha, Raymond Rhule and Lionel Mapoe eventually play test rugby at some point in the future. Irrespective of this, until the rules change, a Bok cap remains is a Bok cap and players in the same boat as the Maritzburg College trio of Jeremy Thomson, Pieter Dixon and Craig Burden will forever be remembered as Springboks. The analysis below takes these kinds of Springboks into account and allocates even those that earned actual test match caps later on in their careers, to the coach that initially picked them but did not give them a run on the park.
Effectively since readmission an average of 13.76 players (rounded up to 14 on table) per year have become Springboks.
Table updated on 24/11/2012
| Coach & Period | P | W | D | L | Ttl W% | NZ W% | Aus W% | Eng W% | Fra W% | New Caps | Bok /yr |
| J.Williams 1992-1992 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 20% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 50% | 26 | 26.0 |
| G.Sonnekus 1993-1993 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | – | – | – | – | 0 | – |
| I.McIntosh 1993-1994 | 12 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 42% | 17% | 33% | 50% | 25% | 34 | 21.9 |
| K.Christie 1994-1995 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 12 | 8.3 |
| A.Markgraff 1996-1996 | 13 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 62% | 20% | 50% | – | 100% | 19 | 19.0 |
| C.du Plessis 1997-1997 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 38% | 0% | 50% | – | – | 9 | 14.6 |
| N.Mallett 1997-2000 | 38 | 27 | 0 | 11 | 71% | 57% | 38% | 67% | 100% | 43 | 14.1 |
| H.Viljoen 2000-2002 | 15 | 8 | 1 | 6 | 57% | 0% | 75% | 0% | 33% | 22 | 16.5 |
| R.Straueli 2002-2003 | 23 | 12 | 0 | 11 | 52% | 0% | 50% | 0% | 0% | 33 | 16.5 |
| J.White 2004-2007 | 54 | 36 | 1 | 17 | 68% | 33% | 55% | 71% | 38% | 39 | 9.8 |
| P.de Villiers 2008-2011 | 48 | 30 | 0 | 18 | 63% | 45% | 33% | 100% | 50% | 36 | 9.0 |
| H.Meyer 2012– | 12 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 67% | 0% | 50% | 88% | – | 16 | 16.0 |
| OVERALL | 242 | 150 | 6 | 86 | 63% | 30% | 45% | 61% | 53% | 289 | 13.8 |
Possibly the most relevant period starts when Nick Mallett took the reigns. From that point onwards, SA rugby was a lot more stable in terms of coaching changes with just six men being in charge for a little over 15 season in total. As a result in 189 games, 189 Boks were capped at an average of 12.29 caps per season between 1997 and today. Before that period 100 players were called up for just 52 games by effectively five different coaches in less than six years. At the very least one should discount the short reign of John Williams, who understandably had to introduce a whole bunch of players to international rugby following more or less a decade of isolation. Do that and you get down to 13.15 players per year.
@Greenwood: Kitch Christie stats are great only i think the mix of opponents was not great he only faced NZ/Aus once each which maybe helps him a bit. The only coach who had a good run vs NZ was Nick Mallet.
I think if you look at the NZ/Aus overall stats it show we have gone backwards since re-admission.
I think it is all about NZ/Aus did a mind change on how rugby should be played in the late 80,s to a more speed and skills approach were we have stuck to the old of will have big men to over power you and have fly half who will kick attitude.
BoishaaiPa – must agree with your first comments –
to be a “proper” Springbok you need be on the field during a 1st class game – Kitch Christie’s stats REALLY stand out
Springbok captain Jean de Villiers will become the fifth most-capped Springbok of all time and most-capped member of the 2012 squad when he plays in his 84th Test.
De Villiers will pass Bryan Habana on 83 caps to move into fifth place behind John Smit (111), Victor Matfield (110), Percy Montgomery (102) and Joost van der Westhuizen (89).
All matches at London against England since 1906
Date Opponent Score Result Starting Caps Debutants Captain
Saturday, 8 December 1906 England 3 – 3 D 35 1 Paul Roos
Saturday, 4 January 1913 England 9 – 3 W 47 2 Dougie Morkel
Saturday, 2 January 1932 England 7 – 0 W 56 1 Bennie Osler
Friday, 5 January 1951 England 8 – 3 W 63 0 Hennie Muller
Saturday, 7 January 1961 England 5 – 0 W 83 1 Avril Malan
Saturday, 20 December 1969 England 8 – 11 L 144 2 Dawie de Villiers
Saturday, 14 November 1992 England 16 – 33 L 86 2 Naas Botha
Saturday, 18 November 1995 England 24 – 14 W 177 0 Francois Pienaar
Saturday, 29 November 1997 England 29 – 11 W 259 1 Gary Teichman
Saturday, 5 December 1998 England 7 – 13 L 372 0 Gary Teichman
Saturday, 2 December 2000 England 17 – 25 L 435 1 André Vos
Saturday, 24 November 2001 England 9 – 29 L 364 0 Bobby Skinstad
Saturday, 23 November 2002 England 3 – 53 L 209 1 Corné Krige
Saturday, 20 November 2004 England 16 – 32 L 407 1 John Smit
Saturday, 18 November 2006 England 21 – 23 L 253 1 John Smit
Saturday, 25 November 2006 England 25 – 14 W 270 1 John Smit
Saturday, 22 November 2008 England 42 – 6 W 544 1 John Smit
Saturday, 27 November 2010 England 21 – 11 W 571 0 Victor Matfield
Stats and facts:
•South Africa and England have played each other 35 times since 1906, with the Springboks winning 21 Tests, losing 12 and with two draws. The Springboks have scored 733 points and 68 tries and conceded 549 points and 39 tries for an average score of 21-16.
•South Africa and England last met on 23 June 2012 in Port Elizabeth. That match was drawn 14-14.
•Jean de Villiers will extend his record as the most-capped Springbok centre, with 68 Tests in this position.
•Gurthrö Steenkamp has scored the most Test tries as a Springbok prop – six.
•Ruan Pienaar jointly holds the record for the most career conversions at Twickenham with Percy Montgomery – three.
•Pat Lambie and Willem Alberts will earn their 20th Springbok caps and Gurthrö Steenkamp will play in his 40th Test for South Africa.
•JP Pietersen needs two tries against England to equal the Springbok record of six career tries against England, held by Bryan Habana.
•Ruan Pienaar needs six points to equal the Springbok record of 26 career points at Twickenham, held by Braam van Straaten.
•Jean de Villiers, Francois Hougaard and Jannie du Plessis will end the season having started in all 12 Tests in 2012.
•Adriaan Straus and Ruan Pienaar will have played in all 12 Tests with four and five appearances from the bench respectively.
•Flip van der Merwe and Marcell Coetzee could also complete a full-house of 12 Tests for the season should they be used as substitutes on Saturday.
•The referee is Nigel Owens of Wales. He’s referee in eight Tests involving South Africa before, of which the Springboks have won five and lost three.
Springbok Test match records at Twickenham:
oMost points – 21 by Jannie de Beer (6p, d) against Australia on 30 October, 1999 (and 20 by André Pretorius (c, 2p, 4d) against England on 25 November, 2006)
oMost tries – two by Chester Williams against England on 18 November, 1995
oMost conversions – three by Ruan Pienaar against England on 22 November, 2008
oMost penalty goals – six by Jannie de Beer against Australia on 30 October, 1999 (and four by Braam van Straaten against England on 2 December, 2000)
oMost drop goals – four by André Pretorius against England on 25 November, 2006
@BoishaaiPa: Can’t change history but it is something that they should consider scrapping now. If you kit up and get onto the park, you are a Bok. Maybe they should bring back the Gazelles – a blue jersey for any tourist who does not get a game.
The only criteria that can establish if you are a Springbok is if you have a test cap…finish and klaar. Ask any Springbok who they regard as part of the “brotherhood”..Those who received their first test cap and went through the “kontiki”…being part of a touring side , doesnt automatically make you a Springbok..hell, then they might as well start claiming caps for the baggage masters and video analysts..they were on tour with the Boks as well!..
@Playa: His wife fell ill, so he resigned as coach to be with her.
What was the reason for Sonnekus not having been in charge of any test matches in his reign?