Thys Lourens

Last updated

Thys Lourens
Birth nameMatthys Johannes Lourens
Date of birth (1943-05-15) 15 May 1943 (age 79)
Place of birth Vryheid, KwaZulu-Natal
Height1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Weight90 kg (198 lb)
SchoolVryheid High School
Rugby union career
Position(s) Flank
Provincial / State sides
YearsTeamApps(Points)
Northern Transvaal 168 ()
National team(s)
YearsTeamApps(Points)
1968 South Africa 3 (3)

Matthys Johannes 'Thys' Lourens (born 15 May 1943) is a former South African rugby union Rugby player. [1]

Contents

Playing career

Lourens played 168 first class provincial matches for Northern Transvaal, 91 of which were in the Currie Cup competition. He captained the team on 84 occasions and scored 63 tries. [2]

Only Louis Moolman (171), Naas Botha (179) and Burger Geldenhuys (184) have played in more matches than Lourens. His usual position was as a flanker, where he also played for the national team, the Springboks. [3]

He represented South Africa thrice, the first on 22 June 1968, when he played at flanker in a match against the British & Irish Lions at the Boet Erasmus Stadium in Port Elizabeth, which resulted in a six-all draw. He played in the subsequent test at Newlands in which he scored a try in the 11–6 win. He earned a third cap in the third match of the test series, at Ellis Park, which the Springboks won 19–6.

Test history

No.OppositionResult (RSA 1st)PositionTriesDateVenue
1.British and Irish Lions flag with no Lion.svg  British Lions 6–6 Flank 22 June 1968 Boet Erasmus, Port Elizabeth
2. British and Irish Lions flag with no Lion.svg British Lions11–6Flank113 July 1968 Newlands, Cape Town
3. British and Irish Lions flag with no Lion.svg British Lions19–6Flank27 July 1968 Ellis Park, Johannesburg

See also

Related Research Articles

Naas Botha Rugby player

Hendrik Egnatius 'Naas' Botha is a South African former rugby union player, who played for Northern Transvaal and South Africa.

Schalk Burger Rugby player

Schalk Willem Petrus Burger Jr. is a former South African professional rugby union player. He played as a flanker for Saracens in the English Premiership and has won 86 caps for South Africa.

Blue Bulls South African rugby team

The 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 Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, Gauteng province.

Bryan Habana Rugby player

Bryan Gary Habana OIS is a South African former professional rugby union player who initially played as an outside centre but later on, he shifted to the wing. He most recently played for Toulon in the French Top 14 competition, and for the South Africa national team.

The 1971 South Africa rugby union tour of Australia was a controversial six-week rugby union tour by the Springboks to Australia. Anti-apartheid protests came to being all around the country. The tour is perhaps most infamous for a state of emergency being declared in Queensland. In total, around 700 people were arrested whilst the Springboks were on tour.

Juan Smith Former South African rugby union player

Juanne Hugo Smith is a South African former professional rugby union player who represented South Africa in international test rugby, the Cheetahs in the Super Rugby competition, and the Free State Cheetahs in the Currie Cup. He mainly played as a blindside flanker, although he has also played number eight.

Johannes Lodewikus 'Wikus' van Heerden is a South African former rugby union player who played as a flanker. He finished his career playing for the Lions in Super Rugby, and the Golden Lions in the national Currie Cup competition. Van Heerden also won 14 caps for the South Africa national team, the Springboks. Before his move to the Bulls, he was the captain of the Cats.

Heinrich Brüssow South Africa international rugby union player

Heinrich Wilhelm Brüssow is a South African former professional rugby union player. His usual position was as open-side flanker and his most recent club was Northampton Saints in the English Premiership.

Wynand Claassen is a former South African rugby player and Springbok captain.

Ruben Jacobus Kruger was a South African rugby union player. He played as a flanker. He had two daughters Zoë and Isabella, whose play tennis. Isabella played quarter final on the junior tournament at the 2022 Wimbledon Championships.

Jan Hendrik Ellis was a South African rugby union player who represented the Springboks in 38 tests, which at his retirement in 1976 was a record. His 7 test tries equalled Ferdie Bergh's record for forwards and were only surpassed in 1997 by Mark Andrews' 12 tries. Playing on the flank, Ellis was instantly recognisable on the field due to his red hair and uncompromising playing style. Among three Springboks invited to participate in the first unofficial rugby sevens world cup in 1973, he was ranked in 2003 as the 12th greatest Springbok of all time.

Bjorn Basson South African rugby union player

Bjorn Alberic Basson is a South African professional rugby union player playing as a wing or full-back for the San Diego Legion of Major League Rugby (MLR).

Coenraad Victor Oosthuizen, nicknamed 'Coenie' or 'Shrek', is a professional rugby union player for Sale Sharks in the English Premiership. He previously represented the Free State Cheetahs and Sharks in the Currie Cup, the Cheetahs and Sharks in Super Rugby and also was chosen for the Springboks squad in 2010, 2011 and 2012, making his test debut in the first test against England in Durban in 2012.

Siyamthanda Kolisi is a South African professional rugby union player who currently captains the South Africa national team and also the Cell C Sharks. He plays club rugby for the Sharks in the Currie Cup. He generally plays as a flanker and a loose forward. In 2018, Kolisi was appointed captain of the Springboks, becoming the first black man to hold the position, and eventually leading the South African Rugby team to victory in the 2019 Rugby World Cup Final against England. In December 2019, Kolisi was named in New African magazine's list of 100 Most Influential Africans.

Eben Etzebeth Rugby player

Eben Etzebeth is a South African professional rugby union player who currently plays for the South Africa national team and Sharks in the United Rugby Championship. His regular playing position is as a number 4 lock.

Malcolm Marx Rugby player

Malcolm Justin Marx is a South African professional rugby union player for the South Africa national team and the Kubota Spears in the Japanese Top League. His regular position is hooker, but he did play as a flanker at youth level for the Golden Lions.

Helgard Lourens Müller is a South African former rugby union footballer. He was capped twice by the Springboks and played centre and wing for Free State.

Aphiwe Odwa Dyantyi is a South African professional rugby union player who currently plays for the South Africa national team, the Lions in Super Rugby, the Golden Lions in the Currie Cup and the Golden Lions XV in the Rugby Challenge. He is currently suspended from all rugby pending alleged doping allegations, which also ruled him out of participating in South Africa's successful 2019 rugby world cup campaign. His regular position is wing or centre.

Stephen Atherton is a South African former rugby union player.

References

  1. "Thys Lourens". ESPN scrum. Retrieved 6 October 2019.
  2. Van Rooyen, Quintus (1985). S.A. Rugby Writers Annual 1985. Verwoerdburg: SA Rugby Writers' Society. p. 139.
  3. http://thebulls.co.za/the-team/player-of-the-week/thys-lourens.html