The hope and heartbreak of the almost-Springboks
Jul 23, 2021
3 minutes
In 1981, the then Eastern Transvaal’s tough centre, Jannie Els, took part in trials to choose a side to play against the touring Ireland rugby team. The news that he had made the Springbok squad was conveyed to him by Ben Erwee, the secretary of the Eastern Transvaal Rugby Union, after receiving a call from a Johannesburg newspaper.
The reporter told Erwee he had received the list of players chosen from a reliable source and that Els was on that list. However, when the Springbok team
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