List of South Africa national rugby union players
Several players from the South Africa national rugby union team have joined the IRB and International Hall of Fame.
Matfield was the most-capped lock for any nation in rugby history, with all of his 127 appearances at that position in 2011, this record has now been overtaken by Alun Wyn Jones.
(as at 10 December 2019)[3] Morné Steyn holds the Springbok record for the fastest 100 points (8 Test matches)[4] Although statistics on the success rate of kicks at goal were not kept until the late 1980s, it is believed that Steyn also holds the record for most consecutive successful kicks at goal in Tests.
He had a streak of 41 successful kicks at goal, which started during the Boks' Test against Italy on 19 June 2010 and ended on 6 November 2010 against Ireland.
(as at 14 February 2018)[10][2] Fly-half Jannie de Beer holds the world record for dropped goals in a Test match (5, during the 44–21 quarter-final win over England in the 1999 Rugby World Cup) The most points Montgomery ever scored in a single international was 35 against Namibia in 2007—this is also a South African record.
On 1 August during the 2009 Tri Nations tournament, Morné Steyn set a number of records during the second Test between the Springboks and the All Blacks.
He also played in the series against the All Blacks in 1928, but most notably captained the Springboks on their Grand Slam tour of 1931–32 when they defeated all four Home Nations.
[17] The man most credited with inventing modern number 8 play was Hennie Muller, inducted into the International Hall of Fame in 2001.
[19] He played 13 Tests between 1949 and 1953, and in the process won a 4–0 series victory over the All Blacks and a Grand Slam tour of Britain and Ireland.
[27] Botha contributed significantly to the Springboks 1980 series win over the Lions, and also played for the World XV in the IRB Centenary Match at Twickenham.
[31] It was there he captained South Africa to the World Cup title, and received the trophy from Nelson Mandela who was wearing his number 6 jersey.
[34] At the time of his retirement following the 2003 World Cup he was South Africa's leading try scorer and most capped player.
[34] The newest Springbok players to enter the IRB Hall of Fame are John Smit, inducted in 2011 alongside Pienaar,[33] and Bryan Habana, who received this honor for his remarkable contributions to South African rugby.
[36] Habana, renowned for his outstanding achievements on the international stage, became the second Springbok to receive the World Rugby Player of the Year award after Schalk Burger in 2004.
As of 23 November 2024, 945 South African rugby union players have represented the Springboks, either by playing in a test match or touring with the national side.
