Gideon Johannes Stegmann (born 22 March 1986) 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 ...

player, who most recently played as an openside flank for

Honda Heat Mie Honda Heat is a Japanese rugby union team based in Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture, Japan. The owner of the club is Honda Motor. (Suzuka is known for the Suzuka Circuit and the presence of car companies.) They play in the Japan Rugby League One, ...

in the

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

ese

Top League Japan Rugby League One (formerly the Top League) is a rugby union competition in Japan. It is the highest level of professional rugby competition in the country. The Japan Rugby Football Union created the competition in 2003, by absorbing the ...

. He made his Super 14 debut for the Bulls in 2008 at the age of 21. Stegmann is a classic fetcher with a low centre of gravity who is thriving under the new law interpretations- and his anticipation, together with his toughness, is a huge asset for the Bulls. He made the number 6 jersey his own in 2008 after playing in every Super 14 match and being awarded Bulls Forward of the Year in 2008. His grandpa is famous springbok player Johannes Augustus Stegmann. He has been one of the Super Rugby's best openside flankers from 2008 to 2011. He is one of the hardest-working players in the Bulls' squad, as well as a superb team player with a very high work rate, regularly leading the tackle count, turnover and work rate stats for the Bulls. He has a time of 10.8 seconds in the 100-metre sprint. At the Bulls, Stegmann plays in a back row combination together with

Springbok The springbok (''Antidorcas marsupialis'') is a medium-sized antelope found mainly in south and southwest Africa. The sole member of the genus ''Antidorcas'', this bovid was first described by the German zoologist Eberhard August Wilhelm v ...

flank,

Dewald Potgieter Dewald Potgieter (born 22 February 1987 in Port Elizabeth, South Africa) is a professional South African rugby union rugby player. His first tour with the Springboks was to France, Italy, Ireland & England in late 2009. Potgieter plays loose for ...

and

number 8,

Pierre Spies Pierre Johan Spies (born 8 June 1985 in Pretoria) is a retired South African rugby union player. He usually played as a Number 8, but could also play as a flanker and at times was deployed on the wing. Between 2005 and 2015, he spent the major ...

, winning 2 Super 14 titles in 2 successive years as well as 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 ...

. In 2013, he signed a contract extension to keep him at the until 2015.

Education

Stegmann attended South Africa's top-ranked rugby school: Grey College,

Bloemfontein Bloemfontein, ( ; , "fountain of flowers") also known as Bloem, is one of South Africa's three capital cities and the capital of the Free State (province), Free State province. It serves as the country's judicial capital, along with legisla ...

, where he was selected for the SA schools team. During high school he was a track and field athlete and played number 8 (as well as flank) in Grey College's First XV loose trio, alongside

and

Cheetahs The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large cat native to Africa and central Iran. It is the fastest land animal, estimated to be capable of running at with the fastest reliably recorded speeds being , and as such has evolved specialized ...

flank Heinrich Brüssow, and

now Irish international flank Richardt Strauss. Tertiary education:

UNISA The University of South Australia (UniSA) is a public research university in the Australian state of South Australia. It is a founding member of the Australian Technology Network of universities, and is the largest university in South Australi ...

Springbok career

In November 2010, Stegmann was called up to the Springbok squad (outgoing tours) as a replacement to injured Springbok flank and former IRB player of the year

Schalk Burger Schalk Willem Petrus Burger Jr. (born 13 April 1983) is a South African former professional rugby union player. He played as a flanker for Saracens in the English Premiership and has won 86 caps for South Africa. He was a member of the 2007 Ru ...

, and was handed his first cap as a Springbok debutant in the starting lineup named to face Ireland on 6 November 2010. The Springboks won and Stegmann subsequently started every match on tour. South Africa obtained a result of 3–1 over the Isles, beating England and Wales and losing to Scotland.

Squads

* Free State (U/18

Craven Week The Craven Week is an annual rugby union tournament organised for schoolboys in the Republic of South Africa. The tournament started in July 1964, and is named after the legendary Springbok rugby union player and coach Dr Danie Craven. The tou ...

) – 2004 * Vodacom

Blue Bulls The Blue Bulls (known for sponsorship reasons as the Vodacom Blue Bulls) is a South African rugby union team that participates in the annual Currie Cup tournament. They are governed by the Blue Bulls Rugby Union and are based at Loftus Versfe ...

(

Vodacom Cup The Vodacom Cup was an annual rugby union competition in South Africa. Annual Vodacom Cup competitions were played between its inaugural season in 1998 and 2015 and was contested between February and May each year. The Vodacom Cup was the succes ...

) – 2005 * Blue Bulls (SA Under 19) – 2005 * Blue Bulls (ABSA Under 21) – 2006 * Vodacom Blue Bulls (Vodacom Cup) – 2007 * Vodacom Blue Bulls ( ABSA Currie Cup Premier Div) – 2007 * Vodacom Bulls ( Super 14) – 2008 * Vodacom Blue Bulls (ABSA Currie Cup Premier Div) – 2008 * Vodacom Bulls (Super 14) – 2009 * Vodacom Blue Bulls (ABSA Currie Cup Premier Div) – 2009 * Vodacom Bulls (Super 14) – 2010 * South Africa (Outgoing Tours) – 2010 * Vodacom Bulls (

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 ...

) - 2011 * South Africa (Castle Tri Nations) - 2011 * Vodacom Blue Bulls (ABSA Currie Cup Premier Div) - 2011 * Vodacom Bulls (Super 15) - 2012

References

External links

Bulls profile
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stegmann, Deon 1986 births Living people People from Cradock, Eastern Cape South African rugby union players Bulls (rugby union) players Blue Bulls players South Africa international rugby union players Rugby union flankers Afrikaner people Alumni of Grey College, Bloemfontein Mie Honda Heat players South African expatriate rugby union players Expatriate rugby union players in Japan South African expatriate sportspeople in Japan Rugby union players from the Eastern Cape