Stephanus Petrus Wessels (born 9 November 1992) is a South African rugby union player, who last played with the . He plays as a loosehead prop.

Rugby career

2009 : Schoolboy rugby

Wessels was born in Paarl. He attended Jan Kriel School in

Kuils River Kuils River (Afrikaans: Kuilsrivier) is a town in the Western Cape, South Africa, 25 km (15 miles) east of Cape Town CBD at the gateway of the Cape Winelands. It is also the name of the main tributary of the Eerste River, and forms part of th ...

, a school for Learners with Special Educational Needs (LSEN), from where he was selected in a South African LSEN team that competed at the 2009 Under-18 Craven Week tournament held in

East London East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the f ...

. He started all three of their matches and scored a try in their match against Boland.

2011 : Western Province

In 2011, Wessels made four appearances for the team in the Under-19 Provincial Championship. He started one of those – as a tighthead prop in a 9–all draw against the s – and three appearances as a replacement.

2012 : Griquas

Wessels 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 ...

for the 2012 season. He started all seven matches for the team in Division B of the Under-21 Provincial Championship, helping them finish in fourth position to reach the semi-finals, where they were beaten 5–67 by .

2013–present : Boland Cavaliers

Wessels moved back to the Western Cape for the 2013, joining the Wellington-based . He made seven starts for the team in the

2013 Under-21 Provincial Championship The 2013 ABSA Under-21 Provincial Championship will be contested from 12 July to 26 October 2013. The tournament will feature the Under-21 players from the fourteen provincial rugby unions in South Africa. Competition Group A There are seven part ...

regular season, scoring two tries in their final match against to finish second on the log and secure a play-off spot. Wessels started their 25–22 victory over in the semi-final, as well as the final against , which the side from

Port Elizabeth Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, Sou ...

won 59–19. At the start of 2014, Wessels took part in the national amateur club rugby competition, the

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, for Roses United. He helped them finish top of Pool C, and eventual sixth place in the competition after losing to Despatch in the Bowl Final. He made his first class debut in April 2014, coming on as a replacement for Boland Cavaliers in their 21–28 defeat to the in the

2014 Vodacom Cup The 2014 Vodacom Cup was played between 7 March and 16 May 2014 and was the 17th edition of this annual domestic cup competition. This edition of the Vodacom Cup was played between fourteen provincial rugby union teams in South Africa from the Cu ...

, making a further appearance in a 41–17 victory over the in Piketberg a fortnight later. Wessels returned to Vodacom Cup action in

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, making six appearances in the competition. After four appearances off the bench, he made his first senior start against the Eastern Province Kings in Citrusdal, followed by a second start a week later against the Border Bulldogs. He was then named in their Currie Cup qualification squad, starting all six of their matches as his team finished in fourth position, unable to clinch a place in the Currie Cup Premier Division. He made three starts for them in the First Division, but five consecutive defeats condemned the team to fifth place, missing out on the play-offs. Wessels made six starts for the Boland Cavaliers during the

2016 Currie Cup qualification The 2016 Currie Cup qualification series was a South African rugby union competition organised by the South African Rugby Union which was played between 9 April and 23 July 2016. It featured all fourteen South African provincial unions plus the f ...

competition. It proved to be a successful campaign under new head coach Brent Janse van Rensburg, with Boland finishing in third position in the competition to qualify for the Premier Division for the first time since

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

. He made his debut at that level in their opening match of the season, a 16–44 defeat to the in Wellington, eventually making seven appearances to help his side to seventh place in the competition.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wessels, SP South African rugby union players Living people 1992 births Sportspeople from Paarl Rugby union props Boland Cavaliers players Rugby union players from the Western Cape