Robert Jacobus Petzer (born ) is a South African

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 for

Rugby ATL Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

of the

Major League Rugby Major League Rugby (MLR or USMLR) is a professional rugby union competition and the top-level championship for clubs in North America. In the 2022 season it was contested by thirteen teams: twelve from the United States and one from Canada. Off ...

(MLR) in the United States. He previously played for the

Glendale Raptors The American Raptors is a professional rugby union team based in the municipality of Glendale in Colorado. The team plays in the transcontinental Super Rugby Americas competition . Established as the Glendale Raptors in 2006, the team was a found ...

in the MLR. His regular position is fly-half.

Rugby career

Petzer was born in

Parys Parys (pronounced ) is a town situated on the banks of the Vaal River in the Free State province of South Africa. The name of the town is the Afrikaans translation of Paris. The name was given by a German surveyor named Schilbach who had partic ...

and initially attended high school in

Kroonstad Kroonstad (Afrikaans directly translated "Crown City") is the third largest city in the Free State (after Bloemfontein and Welkom) and lies two hours' drive on the N1 from Gauteng. Maokeng is an area within Kroonstad, and is occasionally used ...

, where he earned a call-up to represent the at the Under-16 Grant Khomo Week in 2012. He then moved to

Kimberley Kimberly or Kimberley may refer to: Places and historical events Australia * Kimberley (Western Australia) ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Kimberley * Kimberley Warm Springs, Tasmania * Kimberley, Tasmania a small town * County of Kimberley, a ...

, where he was selected in the '

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 ...

squad in 2014. He joined the academy after school, but left

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

after just one year to return to the . He represented them in the 2016 Under-20 Provincial Championship, finishing as the competition's third highest points scorer with 111 points. 2018 turned out to be a whirlwind season for Petzer; he was named in the senior squad for the

2017 Rugby Challenge The 2017 Rugby Challenge – known as the SuperSport Rugby Challenge for sponsorship reasons – is the first edition of the Rugby Challenge, the secondary domestic rugby union competition in South Africa, and the long-term successor of the V ...

, and he made their first class debut for them in their match against the in

Welkom Welkom () is the second-largest city in the Free State province of South Africa, located about northeast of Bloemfontein which is the provincial capital. Welkom is also known as Circle City, City Within A Garden, Mvela and Matjhabeng. The cit ...

, where Petzer kicked one penalty in a 48–53 defeat. In the second half of the season, Petzer joined the , and he made his

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 ...

debut for the team in a match against the . A few weeks later, injuries to a number of '

Pro14 The United Rugby Championship (URC) is an annual rugby union competition involving professional teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales. The current name was adopted in 2021 when the league expanded to include four South Afr ...

fly-halves — with

Niel Marais Daniel Rudolf Marais (born 21 January 1992, in Bloemfontein) is a South African rugby union player for Yamaha Júbilo in the Top League in Japan. He usually plays as a centre, but can also play as a fly-half or fullback. Career Youth Marais fi ...

Fred Zeilinga Frederik Johannes Zeilinga (born 11 December 1992) is a South African rugby union player for Canon Eagles in the Japanese Top League. His regular position is fly-half. Career Youth Zeilinga represented the at Under-13, Under-16, Under-18, Unde ...

Ernst Stapelberg Theo Ernst Stapelberg (born ) is a South African rugby union player who last played for the in Pro14, the in the Currie Cup and the in the Rugby Challenge. His regular position is fly-half. Rugby career Youth rugby Stapelberg was born in ...

and

Ryno Eksteen Ryno Eksteen (born 3 October 1994 in Centurion) is a South African rugby union player for the Seattle Seawolves in Major League Rugby. He previously played for the in the Currie Cup and the in the Rugby Challenge. His regular position is fly-h ...

all injured — Petzer was called up into the squad and he started their second ever match, an 18–51 defeat to Irish side in

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

, with Petzer scoring eight of his side's points. While that was his last action in the Pro14, he made a further 3 starts for in the Currie Cup competition. He moved to

George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

prior to the 2018 season to join the . He spent one season there before joining

side

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Petzer, Robbie 1996 births Living people Cheetahs (rugby union) players Expatriate rugby union players in the United States Free State Cheetahs players Griffons (rugby union) players People from Parys Rugby union fly-halves Rugby union fullbacks South African expatriate rugby union players South African expatriate sportspeople in the United States SWD Eagles players American Raptors players Rugby ATL players Pumas (Currie Cup) players Rugby union centres Rugby union players from the Free State (province)