Marthinus Theunis Steyn 'Theuns' Stofberg was the captain of the

South Africa national rugby union team The South Africa national rugby union team, commonly known as the Springboks (colloquially the Boks, Bokke or Amabokoboko), is the country's national team governed by the South African Rugby Union. The Springboks play in green and gold jerse ...

(Springboks) for four

tests Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to: * Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities Arts and entertainment * ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film * ''Test'' (2014 film), ...

between 1980 and 1984. He is remembered for his speed and his size, both remarkable for a

flank Flank may refer to: * Flank (anatomy), part of the abdomen ** Flank steak, a cut of beef ** Part of the external anatomy of a horse * Flank speed, a nautical term * Flank opening, a chess opening * A term in Australian rules football * The si ...

at that time.

Youth and early career

He was born Marthinus Theunis Steyn Stofberg (named after the President of the

Orange Free State The Orange Free State ( nl, Oranje Vrijstaat; af, Oranje-Vrystaat;) was an independent Boer sovereign republic under British suzerainty in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeat ...

), in

Villiers, Free State Villiers is a small town situated on the banks of the Vaal River next to the N3 highway in the Free State province of South Africa. It was founded in 1882 on the two farms ''Pearson Valley'' and ''Grootdraai'' owned by Lourens de ''Villiers''. L ...

on 6 June 1955. He attended school at Grey College in

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 ...

, one of the strongholds in South African rugby. He started his provincial career playing for Free State while he was still studying at the

University of the Free State The University of the Free State is a multi-campus public university in Bloemfontein, the capital of the Free State and the judicial capital of South Africa. It was first established as an institution of higher learning in 1904 as a tertiary se ...

. When he was called up for his

conscription Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...

he was moved to

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends ...

where he started playing for Northern Transvaal, currently called the

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 ...

. It was during this time that he went from strength to strength cementing his place in the national side as flanker.

Career

He played his first test on the 14 August 1976 against

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

Free State Stadium The Free State Stadium ( af, Vrystaatstadion), currently known as the Toyota Stadium for sponsorship reasons and formerly known as Vodacom Park, is a stadium in Bloemfontein, South Africa, used mainly for rugby union and also sometimes for associa ...

, Bloemfontein at the age of 21. The Springboks lost the test 9-15. He played in 21 tests and scored 6 tries during this time. His first test as captain was against the

South American Jaguars The South American XV (sometimes known as CONSUR XV and formerly as South American Jaguars) is a rugby union team made up from the national rugby sides in the Sudamérica Rugby (formerly CONSUR) rugby federation. The squad was first formed in ...

on the 18 October 1980 in

Montevideo Montevideo () is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

where the Springboks won 22-13. His biggest test as a captain was leading the Springbok side, after the regular captain

Wynand Claassen Wynand Claassen (born 16 January 1951, in Schweizer-Reneke) is a former South African rugby player and Springbok captain. Playing career He was selected as eighth-man for Northern Transvaal whilst studying architecture at the University of Pre ...

was injured, in the first test of the infamous 1981 Springbok Tour of New Zealand. The tour was disrupted by protesters during the matches and is now seen as one of the most important tours in rugby history. Stofberg did not play in the last of the three test series, which was stopped momentarily due to a light airplane throwing flour bombs, due to a knee injury that would ultimately end his career. Stofberg left Northern Transvaal in 1982 and moved to their arch-rivals

Western Province Rugby Union Western Province (known for sponsorship reasons as DHL Western Province) is a South African professional rugby union team based in Newlands, Cape Town, that participates in the annual Currie Cup and Vodacom Cup tournaments. Founded in 1883, the ...

where he settled and opened a

physiotherapy Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is one of the allied health professions. It is provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through physical examination, diagnosis, management, prognosis, patient ...

practice. Stofberg captained his last two international tests against

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 ...

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

, winning both and scoring a try in the second test. After yet another series setback due a knee injury he retired from rugby in 1984 at the age of 29. He is the only player in history to have won 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 ...

with three different teams. He won titles with Free State (1976), Northern Transvaal (1979 and 1980) and Western Province (1982 and 1983). In total he played 7 finals, winning 4 ('76, '80, '82 & '83) and drawing one (1980).

Test history

Personal

He lives in

Stellenbosch Stellenbosch (; )A Universal Pronounc ...

today where he has a physiotherapy practice.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stofberg, Theunis 1955 births Living people People from Mafube Local Municipality Afrikaner people South Africa international rugby union players University of the Free State alumni Rugby union flankers Rugby union locks Free State Cheetahs players Blue Bulls players Western Province (rugby union) players Alumni of Grey College, Bloemfontein South Africa national rugby union team captains Rugby union players from the Free State (province)

Youth and early career

Career

Test history

Personal

See also

References