Bradley Barritt (born 7 August 1986) is a South African-born former

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...

player. He played the position of

centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics * Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentri ...

Early life

Barritt attended

Kearsney College Kearsney College is a private boarding, English medium high school for boys in Botha's Hill, a small town between the provincial capital of Pietermaritzburg and Durban, in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. History Kearsney Coll ...

Career

Barritt's debut season was in 2006 for the and

Sharks Sharks are a group of elasmobranch fish characterized by a cartilaginous skeleton, five to seven gill slits on the sides of the head, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the clade Selachimorp ...

in the

Currie Cup The Currie Cup is South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition, played each winter and spring (June to October), featuring teams representing either entire provinces or substantial regions within provinces. Although it is the premier ...

and Super 14. He had the ability to occasionally play fly half and did so to great effect in the 2006 Currie Cup season when perennially injured provincial team-mate Butch James was absent from the squad. However, due to the emergence of Francois Steyn at the coastal franchise, Barritt's opportunity to play fly half was curtailed, leading to him finding a more settled role as the Sharks' first-choice inside centre. Barritt played in the

2007 Super 14 Final The Final of the 2007 Super 14 season, a provincial rugby union competition in the Southern Hemisphere, took place on 19 May 2007 at Kings Park Stadium, ABSA Stadium in Durban, South Africa. The match was won by the Bulls (rugby), Bulls 20 points ...

, losing by a solitary point to the Bulls. He signed for the English Premiership side Saracens, and joined them after winning the 2008 Currie Cup. Due to injuries, he was recalled to play in a 2009 Super 14 fixture against the Waratahs, his final game for the Sharks. Barritt made his Saracens debut against

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...

. During his time at Saracens he won five Premiership titles in 2011, 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2019, with Barritt featuring in all five finals. He also helped Saracens win the European Champions Cup in 2016, 2017 and 2019. In June 2020, it was confirmed Barritt would leave Saracens at the conclusion of the 2019–20 season.

International career

Barritt played for South Africa against France in the final of the

2006 Under 21 Rugby World Championship The 2006 Under 21 Rugby World Championship was played in the Auvergne region of France throughout June 2006. The final was played between South Africa and France at the Stade Marcel-Michelin in Clermont-Ferrand, which saw France win 24–13. Part ...

. He represented the

Emerging Springboks South Africa 'A', also formerly known as the Junior Springboks or the Emerging Springboks, are the second national rugby union team representing South Africa, below the senior national team, the Springboks. Until 2018, it was also under the Sou ...

at the

IRB Nations Cup The Nations Cup is a rugby union competition that was first held in 2006 at Estádio Universitário in Lisbon with Argentina A, Italy A, Portugal and Russia taking part. The tournament is part of the International Rugby Board's US $50 million St ...

in 2007. Barritt was selected by England coach Martin Johnson to represent the

England Saxons England A is England's men's second national rugby union team. The team has previously been known by a number of names, such as England B, Emerging England and, most recently, England Saxons. England A play a key role in the development of emer ...

at the 2009 Churchill Cup. This was possible because Barritt had not yet had a senior-level cap for another country, making him eligible for England as well as South Africa. Barritt's family has strong English roots, and many of his aunts and uncles live in England. Barritt's grandparents were born in England, and his grandfather played rugby union for English Universities. Barritt made his Saxons debut against the

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, scoring a try. Barritt was called up to the

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

senior squad for the first time in 2010 to face the New Zealand Maori and again for the

2012 Six Nations Championship The 2012 Six Nations Championship, known as the 2012 RBS 6 Nations due to the tournament's sponsorship by the Royal Bank of Scotland, was the 13th series of the Six Nations Championship. The annual northern hemisphere rugby union championship wa ...

making his full debut against

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

. He got his first points for England when he scored a try in a memorable win over New Zealand in December 2012. On 15 June, Barritt was called up into the

British & Irish Lions The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The Lions are a test side and most often select players who have already played for their national ...

squad for the

2013 British & Irish Lions tour to Australia The 2013 British & Irish Lions tour to Australia was a rugby union tour during June and July 2013. The British & Irish Lions played ten matches - a three-test series against Australia, and matches against the five Australian Super Rugby sides, a ...

over injury concerns in the back line.

International tries

References

External links

Saracens profileEngland profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barritt, Brad 1986 births Living people Alumni of Kearsney College British & Irish Lions rugby union players from England British & Irish Lions rugby union players from South Africa England international rugby union players English rugby union players Rugby union centres Rugby union players from Durban Saracens F.C. players Sharks (Currie Cup) players Sharks (rugby union) players South African people of British descent University of Natal alumni