Cape Town – The Blue Bulls had sold 13 000 tickets by Friday night for Saturday’s Currie Cup clash against the Cheetahs (3pm kickoff) in what the union hopes will be a fitting farewell to Morné Steyn and Bismarck du Plessis.
The two veteran Springboks will be retiring at the end of this season, and while they try to extend the Bulls’ campaign by helping them beat the Cheetahs to reach the semi-finals, the Pretoria side are unlikely to return to Loftus Versfeld as the Sharks and Cheetahs have already secured the top two spots on the log.
Bulls director of rugby Jake White has coached both players over the years, with a closer association with Du Plessis, who made his Test debut in 2007 against the Wallabies in Sydney – the hooker came on as a substitute, with brother Jannie the starting tighthead prop making his international bow as well.
Bismarck initially missed out on the World Cup squad that year, but following Pierre Spies’ withdrawal, White called up the then-Sharks front-rower as a replacement.
Jannie was also left out of the travelling party, but joined the squad in France during the tournament in place of the injured BJ Botha.
White recalled a memorable moment with Bismarck during the World Cup, as well as his views on Steyn, after including both players in the Bulls match-23 on Friday for the Cheetahs clash, with the flyhalf starting and the hooker on the bench.
“It’s wonderful to talk about them. I’ve known Bismarck since he was 19 and I have coached him as a Springbok, at Montpellier, Sharks and Bulls. He has been an unbelievable role model for the youngsters, and still wins the fitness components that we want him to do,” White said about the 39-year-old Du Plessis.
“I know Bismarck since (he was) 19 and picked him as a Springbok. The story I remember about him is that at the 2007 World Cup, he was running on the treadmill. At that stage, I had Gary Botha and John Smit playing hooker, and he wanted to impress me.
“He was running on the treadmill and I was riding the bicycle in this gym at the hotel. I saw him turning the speed higher and higher to catch my attention, and at one stage, it was on 19 – and he was sprinting like a racehorse!
“Eventually he caught my attention, and I think what he was trying to do was to make sure to show me that he was pushing himself and wanted to play.
“As it turned out, he played in the World Cup final and won a gold medal, and went on to play 70-odd (79) Test matches for South Africa. It’s something I will remember.”
The 38-year-old Steyn earned 68 Bok caps and hung up his Test boots in October 2021 after kicking the winning penalty against the British and Irish Lions earlier that year, which saw him end his international career as the second-highest points-scorer for South Africa with 742, behind Percy Montgomery on 893.
“I’ve had a short time with Morné, but what he has proved, and it’s well documented, is just how hard he’s had to work. He wasn’t as gifted as a kicker when he joined the Bulls, and his record is phenomenal,” White said.
“The only thing is that, when you say Morné, you just think about the two kicks that he won against the British and Irish Lions.
“That’s the one thing people associated with Morné – 12 years apart, he had the same kick and won both series. That’s a phenomenal thing for anybody to have as an accolade.”
IOL Sport