SA Rugby magazine circles back on the Junior Springboks who started the 2012 World Rugby U20 Championship final against New Zealand in Cape Town.
15 Dillyn Leyds
Leyds would make his debut for Western Province in the Vodacom Cup in 2013, but decided to move to Australia for a short stint with the Western Force the following year. In 2014, he returned to Cape Town and won the Currie Cup with WP. In 2015, he made his Stormers bow. Internationally, Leyds made his Springbok debut under Allister Coetzee in 2017, earning nine Test caps that year, but he has only featured once under Rassie Erasmus. In 2020, Leyds moved to France to take up a contract with La Rochelle and won the Champions Cup with the club in 2022.
14 Raymond Rhule
One of the stars of the U20 campaign, Rhule continued his excellent form into the 2012 Currie Cup for the Cheetahs. That earned him a place in Heyneke Meyer’s Springbok squad for the year-end tour in 2012 – though he would have to wait until 2017 to make his Test debut. After making over 50 appearances in six years for the Cheetahs, Rhule moved to the Stormers at the end of 2017. Unfortunately, he never quite settled at the Cape side, while his Test career was affected by playing in a Bok team that constantly changed defensive systems. He left South Africa after the 2018 Super Rugby season for Grenoble, before joining Leyds at La Rochelle in 2020, where he has been in sensational form.
13 Kobus van Wyk
Van Wyk was a late inclusion in the Junior Springbok squad as he joined the team halfway through the tournament as injury cover for Pat Howard. In fact, his only appearance at the U20 Championship that year came in the final against New Zealand. He continued to show his maturity as he made his debut for the Stormers in 2014, despite only playing age-group rugby for Western Province. After a short stint as injury cover at French side Bordeaux, he decided to move to the Sharks. He has since played for the Hurricanes, Leicester Tigers and Zebre, where he is currently based.
12 Jan Serfontein
Serfontein emerged as a leader in 2012 and his fearless performances earned him Junior World Player of the Year. He carried his immense talent through in his first couple of seasons with the Vodacom Bulls, forming a promising midfield partnership with Jesse Kriel, which was replicated on the Test scene with the duo starting eight Tests together since 2016. However, a move to Montpellier in 2017 had him exiting the Springbok selection mix, despite his continued good form for the French outfit, helping them claim the 2020-21 European Challenge Cup.
11 Tshotsho Mbovane
Mbovane’s tale is far more sombre than anyone on this list. It is one which brings to light the realities of being a young, professional sportsman in South Africa, and why these players need far better guidance through their careers. A schoolboy superstar at Paul Roos, Mbovane was climbing the rugby ladder and building a successful career – playing U13 Craven Week, U16 Grant Khomo, U18 Craven Week, SA Schools, and then eventually joining Paul Treu’s Blitzboks set-up out of high school. His star kept rising after the U20 Championships and he was the subject of interest from Western Province, and the union were soon involved in a tug of war for Mbovane’s signature. Unfortunately, his career took a downward turn from there as he battled injury and off-field issues. After a number of years in the rugby wilderness, Mbovane was back in Langa coaching part time. He was later given an opportunity to find new employment and rediscover his love for rugby by the Naka Bulls Rugby Club in Pretoria.
10 Handre Pollard
A player who has undoubtedly fulfilled his potential, Pollard would go on to become the Springboks’ first-choice flyhalf and help the team claim the Webb Ellis Cup in 2019. He spent seven years with the Bulls before taking up a contract to join Montpellier after the 2019 World Cup, and then moving to Leicester Tigers for the 2022-23 Premiership season.
9 Vian van der Watt
One of the try-scorers in the 2012 final, Van der Watt formed an effective halfback partnership with Pollard in the tournament, starting four out of five games together. After the U20 Championship, Van der Watt would continue playing youth rugby for the Lions, while studying towards a degree in finance and playing for UJ in the Varsity Cup. While the Lions lost their Super Rugby status in 2013, Van der Watt helped the union return to the competition as he started in the promotion/relegation win over the Kings. After playing a final season for UJ in 2014, he moved to the Leopards. Stints with Eastern Province and the Boland Cavaliers followed. In 2018, he decided to retire from rugby and focus on his career in finance. He currently works as a financial advisor at Liberty Life Insurance.
8 Fabian Booysen
Booysen started four of the Junior Springboks’ five matches, including the final against New Zealand, where he provided one of the telling touches of the game by offloading to Jan Serfontein to score the definitive try. Booysen played for UJ and Lions, making his Super Rugby and Currie Cup debut in 2015. He continued to fill in for then-Lions captain Warren Whiteley, until he was released from the Lions in 2018. Booysen joined the SWD Eagles and played a season for them before stepping away from rugby.
7 Pieter-Steph du Toit
Another future 2019 World Cup winner, Du Toit would become a regular member of the Springboks after making his Test debut in 2013 against Wales at the Millennium Stadium. Domestically, he made his debut for the Sharks before joining the Stormers. He since thrived – winning three SA Rugby Player of the Year awards and being named 2019 World Rugby Player of the Year. He endured another injury-hit run in 2020 and 2021 and decided to move to Japan, joining Toyota Verblitz, where he currently plays.
6 Wiaan Liebenberg (c)
The captain of the 2012 Junior Springboks, Liebenberg enjoyed a memorable 2012, making his Blue Bulls debut in the Vodacom Cup and winning the Varsity Cup with UP-Tuks before leading the U20s to victory in the Championships. He would then make his Currie Cup debut for the Bulls in the same year to wrap up an amazing 12 months. Despite continuing with the Bulls for the next three years and captaining UP-Tuks, he could not seal a place in the starting lineup at the Pretoria outfit. In 2015, he was recruited by Jake White to join his revolution at Montpellier with a number of other South African players. After making close to 50 appearances, he switched to La Rochelle in 2018. Liebenberg retired from rugby in 2022 to pursue a career in the finance industry, his final game a trophy-winning one in the 2022 Champions Cup final.
5 Ruan Botha
Botha would go on to make his Super Rugby debut for the Lions in 2012, but returned to Cape Town in 2013 to play for the Stormers and Western Province after the Lions were relegated from Super Rugby. He has since played for the Sharks and London Irish and enjoyed two stints in Japan with Kubota Spears, where he currently plays.
4 Paul Willemse
Willemse played in all five games of the U20 Championship – scoring tries in the pool stage against Ireland and Italy. Like Botha, Willemse made his Super Rugby debut for the Lions in the same year, but then signed for the Bulls for 2013. A year later, Willemse accepted a big-money move to Grenoble and joined after the Currie Cup. He then linked up with Jake White at Montpellier in 2015 and qualified to play for France in 2018 via the residency rule. He made his Test debut for France in the 2019 Six Nations, but missed out on a place in France’s World Cup squad. He has continued to be a key player for Les Bleus in 2021 and 2022.
3 Maks van Dyk
Van Dyk was used off the bench in the matches against Ireland and England, but then started the next two games against Argentina and New Zealand. After the tournament, he continued to play for the Sharks U21 team and in the Vodacom Cup until 2013. He then joined the Cheetahs in 2014 and made his Super Rugby debut. After the 2014 Currie Cup, he joined Leinster on a short-term loan deal and made one appearance in their win over Connacht. In 2016, he joined Toulouse before moves to Harlequins, Worcester Warriors and Pau followed.
2 Mark Pretorius
One of the try-scorers in the semi-final against Argentina, Pretorius was part of a powerhouse scrum for the Junior Springboks. He continued to play age-grade rugby for the Lions and represented UJ in the Varsity Cup. However, in 2014, he got his chance for the senior side as injuries robbed the Lions of Robbie Coetzee and Malcolm Marx. Pretorius was named on the bench against the Reds and made his Super Rugby debut in the 59th minute. After three years with the Lions, he joined the SWD Eagles in 2016 and spent a year with the team before moving back to his hometown Nelspruit with the Pumas in 2017. He has retired from rugby and runs an abattoir in White River.
1 Steven Kitshoff
The second member of the pack who would go on to win a World Cup, Kitshoff was marked for greatness in rugby from an early age and had already made his Super Rugby debut as a teenager for the Stormers in 2011. The loosehead prop has gone on to become a Stormers centurion and captained the team to the inaugural Vodacom United Rugby Championship title. He will join Ulster at the end of the 2022-23 season.
Photo: Luke Walker/Gallo Images/Getty Images
