In 1902, a cease-fire was called during the Second Boer War so the British and Boer forces could play a rugby match. The Afrikaner population of South Africa had already caught rugby fever through POW games during the Boer War, and enthusiasm for the game had spread. Though the cease-fire was temporary, it demonstrated the already-enormous passion for rugby in South Africa.
On July 30, 1891, South Africa played its first test match against a touring British Isles team financed by Cape Colony Prime Minister Cecil Rhodes. As South Africa was still learning the game, the British Isles team played and won the twenty matches, giving up only one point to the Springboks. The British Isles team would go on to win against South Africa again on their tour in 1896, but the Springboks would turn the tide after the turn of the century.
After their losses to the British Isles team in the late 1890s, the South African team would find their groove when the visitors returned in 1903. The two teams would draw the opening two Tests, and South Africa eventually prevailed in the last match, 8-0. South Africa would go on to win all of their series until 1956.
Though South Africa was one of the forefront rugby nations in the world, and were instrumental in creating the Rugby World Cup, the Springboks were disallowed from competing in the first two Rugby World Cup tournaments in 1987 and 1991. Anti-apartheid sporting boycotts of South Africa were in full swing, and the team was not allowed to make its World Cup debut until 1995, when South Africa hosted the tournament.
Following South Africa’s victory in the 1995 Rugby World Cup Finals, in which Nelson Mandela presented the tropby to white Afrikaaner captain Francois Pienaar, demonstrating the new Rainbow Nation, the Springboks have continued to struggle with race. The team has garnered criticism for its lack of non-white players, despite the ANC’s policies of transformation that attempt to redress racism in national sport. Meanwhile, coaches have made public statements that hint at their frustration with not being able to pick who they consider to be the best players due to these policies. Currently, only 15 of the 49 players in training for the upcoming World Cup are non-white.
During apartheid, the symbol of the Springbok across all national teams became a symbol of oppression and racially segregated sports. The national cricket team adopted the king protea — South Africa’s national flower, following the end of apartheid — to break with the stigma. The Springboks, however, resisted the change and it was finally decided in 1992 to feature the king protea alongside the springbok on the team’s uniforms. Nelson Mandela became a key opponent of disbanding the springbok emblem, resulting in the compromise.
Ranked second in the world, South Africa is rightfully considered one of the biggest rugby powerhouse nations in the game. But while they have enjoyed success against nearly every corner of the earth, maintaining a positive win-loss ratio against every other country, they continue to fall to the New Zealand All Blacks. South Africa briefly prevailed in 2007 in the Rugby World Cup Finals, but failed to overcome the All Blacks again in 2011, in which New Zealand reclaimed the trophy. Many are looking forward to the upcoming 2015 Rugby World Cup finals, in which the two teams will be matched against each other once more.
Since 1921, the South Africa Springboks have matched up against the New Zealand All Blacks 89 times since 1921, with New Zealand emerging victorious in 51 of the matches. But South Africa shot into the spotlight in early October 2014, when they ended New Zealand’s 22-match winning streak with a 27-25 victory in Johannesburg.
Percy Montgomery was the first Springbok to play in over 100 tests for South Africa, and retired in 2008. Since then, Victor Matfield, John Smit, Bryan Habana, and Jean de Villiers have all played in more than 100 tests for the Springboks, racking up an impressive stat sheet between them.
Five former Springboks have been inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame (Hennie Muller, Morne du Plessis, Naas Botha, Danie Gerber, and Joost van der Westhuizen), two are members of the IRB (International Rugby Board) Hall of Fame (Barry “Fairy” Heatlie and Jon Smit), and four are members of both (Bennie Osler, Danie Craven, Frik du Preez, and Francois Pienaar).
