Burton Francis (born 2 January 1987) is a South African professional

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 its m ...

footballer. He usually plays as a fly-half although he has occasionally operated as a full-back.

Career

Youth

At youth level, he represented at the 2004 Under-18 Academy Week. He moved to the in 2005 and played for them in the 2005 Under-18 Craven Week tournament, which also led to his inclusion in the S.A. Schools B team. He also represented the Leopards in the Under-19 Provincial Championship tournament. In 2006, he joined the and played for them at Under-19 and Under-21 level.

Blue Bulls / Bulls

He made his first class debut for the Blue Bulls in the

2008 Vodacom Cup The 2008 Vodacom Cup was played between 22 February and 16 May 2008 and was the 11th edition of this annual domestic cup competition. This edition of the Vodacom Cup was played between the fourteen provincial rugby union teams in South Africa fro ...

match against the . Only two months later, he made his

Super Rugby Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Building on various Southern Hem ...

debut for the in their match against the . He made several appearances for them in the Vodacom Cup and

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 ...

competitions in 2008 and 2009.

Golden Lions / Lions

In 2010, he moved across the Jukskei River to join the , representing them in both domestic competitions over the next two seasons, as well as making twelve appearances for the in Super Rugby.

Western Province / Stormers

He joined in 2012 and was named 14 times in Super Rugby squads for the , but only made six appearances. He also only made one solitary appearance for in the

2012 Currie Cup Premier Division The 2012 Currie Cup Premier Division was the 74th season in the competition since it started in 1889 and was contested from 11 August to 27 October 2012. The tournament (known as the Absa Currie Cup Premier Division for sponsorship reasons) is the ...

SWD Eagles

He joined the on loan for the

2012 Currie Cup First Division The 2012 Currie Cup First Division was contested from 30 June to 13 October 2012. The tournament (also known as the Absa Currie Cup First Division for sponsorship reasons) is the second tier of South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competit ...

season and was also named in the squad for the

2013 Super Rugby season The 2013 Super Rugby season was the third season of the new 15-team format for the Super Rugby competition involving teams from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. The tournament was won by the Chiefs, who defeated the Canberra-based Brumb ...

, but was released after failing a medical test following a shoulder injury

Griquas / Cheetahs

His journey of South African teams continued when he joined for the

2013 Vodacom Cup The 2013 Vodacom Cup was played between 9 March and 18 May 2013 and was the 16th edition of this annual domestic cup competition. The Vodacom Cup is played between provincial rugby union teams in South Africa from the Currie Cup Premier and First ...

season. Following an injury to

Elgar Watts Elgar Graeme Watts (born 24 September 1985) is a South African professional rugby union player who played for the , , and domestically and for the and the in Super Rugby. His usual position is fly-half. Career Maties Watts started his car ...

, he was included in the ' Super Rugby squad. and never actually made a competitive appearance for Griquas.

Agen

In 2013, he joined French

Pro D2 Rugby Pro D2, also known as Pro D2 is the second tier of rugby union club competition division in France. It is operated by Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR) which also runs the division directly above, the first division Top 14. Rugby Pro D2 was in ...

side Agen.

External links

*
Stormers profile

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Francis, Burton Living people 1987 births South African rugby union players Stormers players Western Province (rugby union) players Rugby union fly-halves Bulls (rugby union) players Blue Bulls players Golden Lions players Lions (United Rugby Championship) players Sportspeople from Paarl Eastern Province Elephants players Cheetahs (rugby union) players SWD Eagles players Rugby union players from the Western Cape