Richardt Strauss

Last updated

Richardt Strauss
Birth nameConrad Richardt Strauss
Date of birth (1986-01-29) 29 January 1986 (age 37)
Place of birth Pretoria, South Africa
Height1.74 m (5.7 ft; 69 in)
Weight101 kg (15.9 st; 223 lb) [1]
School Grey College, Bloemfontein
Notable relative(s) Andries Strauss (brother)
Adriaan Strauss (cousin)
Rugby union career
Position(s) Hooker
Provincial / State sides
YearsTeamApps(Points)
2006–2009
2009—2018		 Free State Cheetahs
Leinster 		54
141		 (70)
(55)
Correct as of 7 March 2017
Super Rugby
YearsTeamApps(Points)
2007–2009 Cheetahs 36 (5)
Correct as of 5 September 2015
International career
YearsTeamApps(Points)
2004–2005
2014–2018
2012–2016		 South Africa U19
Ireland Wolfhounds
Ireland
2
17

(10)
Correct as of 18 June 2016

Richardt Strauss (born 28 January 1986) is a former professional rugby union player who played as a hooker. Born in Pretoria, South Africa, he began his career with the Free State Cheetahs and played for the Cheetahs in Super Rugby before moving to Ireland to play for Leinster Rugby in 2009. After completing three years' residence in Ireland, Strauss qualified to play for the Ireland national team; he made 17 appearances between 2012 and 2016, including three at the 2015 Rugby World Cup. He is the brother of South Africa international Andries Strauss and the cousin of South Africa international Adriaan Strauss.

Contents

Career

Strauss attended Grey College, Bloemfontein. He won the Under 19 Rugby World Championship in 2005 with South Africa. He played for the Free State Cheetahs in the Currie Cup, former club of other past and present Leinster players, Ollie Le Roux and CJ van der Linde. He scored 14 tries in 54 appearances for the Free State Cheetahs, winning the 2006 Currie Cup in the process. In 2007, Strauss joined the Cheetahs in the Super 14 playing in 36 games and scoring 1 try.

Strauss stayed with the Central Cheetahs until 2009 when he signed a contract with Heineken Cup champions Leinster Rugby. Strauss made his first appearance for Leinster as a substitute in their Celtic League victory over the Scarlets. Strauss played in his second game a week later as a substitute in Leinster's Celtic League win over the Cardiff Blues.

Since then, his Leinster career has gone from strength, racking up a total of 35 appearances – including 9 in the Heineken Cup – culminating in Leinster's 2nd Heineken Cup victory against Northampton Saints on 21 May 2011. By this stage, Strauss had established himself as a firm fan favourite and his barn-storming loose displays and solid set-piece played an integral part in Leinster's triumph.

In October 2013, Strauss was diagnosed with a heart condition that required surgery, ruling him out for the rest of the 2013–14 season. [2] [3] However, he made a surprising early return in Leinster's Heineken Cup round 6 pool match against the Ospreys on 17 January 2014. [4] Strauss retired from professional rugby at the end of the 2017/18 season. [5]

In 2012 Strauss became eligible to play for Ireland, and was named in the Irish team to play against his native South Africa on 10 November 2012, [6] where he faced off in the front row against his cousin Adriaan Strauss. [7]

Strauss made his second appearance for Ireland on 24 November 2012 against Argentina, scoring his first ever international try in the process. Strauss' brother Andries has played in a non-cap international for the Springboks against the Barbarians.

Strauss was named in the Ireland squad for the 2015 Rugby World Cup on 31 August 2015 and acquired Irish citizenship two days later on 2 September 2015, during the same citizenship ceremony as Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt. [8]

Notes

  1. ↑ "Ireland Squad | Profiles : Irish Rugby | Official Website". Archived from the original on 12 November 2014. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  2. ↑ "Hooker Strauss needs heart surgery". BBC Sport.
  3. ↑ "Leinster star Richardt Strauss out for season with heart condition". Irish Independent. 8 October 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2013.
  4. ↑ "Richardt Strauss a surprise inclusion for Leinster". The Irish Times .
  5. ↑ "Nacewa and Strauss to retire at the end of the season". RTÉ.ie . 24 April 2018.
  6. ↑ "Ireland include Strauss in squad". ESPN. 24 October 2011. Retrieved 7 November 2012.
  7. ↑ "Pressure increases on Declan Kidney as limp second half exposes Ireland's limitations". Irish Independent. 12 November 2012. Retrieved 13 November 2012.
  8. ↑ "Schmidt, Strauss and Hodges become Irish citizens". RTÉ.ie . 2 September 2015.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pedrie Wannenburg</span> South African rugby union player (1981–2022)

Pedrie Johannes Wannenburg was a South African rugby union player. He last coached for Austin Elite Rugby in North American Major League Rugby. He played for Austin in 2018, Denver Stampede in the now defunct PRO Rugby League of North America and Castres Olympique for two seasons, after two years with Irish club Ulster.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ruan Pienaar</span> South African rugby union player

Ruan Pienaar is a South African professional rugby union player who currently plays either as a scrum-half or as a fly-half for the Free State Cheetahs in the Currie Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Juan Smith</span> 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chiliboy Ralepelle</span> Rugby player

Mahlatse Chiliboy Ralepelle, is a former rugby union player for the Sharks in Super Rugby and in the Currie Cup. His usual position is at hooker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CJ van der Linde</span> South Africa international rugby union player

Christoffel Johannes van der Linde is a South African former professional rugby union player and currently the scrum coach at French Top 14 side Montpellier. He played first class rugby between 2002 and 2015 in South Africa, Ireland, England and France and also made 75 test matches for South Africa, which included winning the 2007 Rugby World Cup. His usual playing position was prop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johnny Sexton</span> Irish rugby union player

Jonathan Jeremiah Sexton is an Irish former professional rugby union player who played as a fly-half and captained the Ireland national team from 2019 until 2023. He also played club rugby for Leinster and Racing 92.

Andries Strauss born 5 March 1984 in Pretoria, South Africa is a former rugby union player that played as a centre.

Steven Robert Sykes is a South African former rugby union player. He played for Oyonnax in the French Top 14. His regular position was lock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adriaan Strauss</span> Rugby player

Jan Adriaan Strauss is a South African former professional rugby union player who played first class rugby between 2005 and 2018. He played in 66 international test matches for South Africa and also featured in three non-test internationals. He played Super Rugby for the Bulls and the Cheetahs, making 156 appearances, a record by a South African player. He also made 78 Currie Cup appearances for the Blue Bulls and Free State Cheetahs.

Jason Harris-Wright is a rugby union player from Ireland. He primarily plays as a hooker. Harris-Wright last played professionally for Bristol in the Greene King IPA Championship.

Darron Paul Nell is a South African professional rugby union player who most recently with the Eastern Province Kings. His usual positions are flanker and number 8.

Danie Poolman is a South African former professional rugby union player. He played for Irish provincial side Connacht Rugby in the Pro12 until 2017 followed by a spell playing amateur rugby in Dublin with Bective Rangers in the Leinster League. He primarily plays on the wing or in the centre. Born in Pretoria, he formerly played for Western Province in South Africa's Currie Cup, and Super Rugby side the Stormers. Qualified to play for Ireland by residence since 2015, Poolman indicated his intention to do so.

Ethienne Reynecke is a South African rugby union player. His primary position is hooker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ian Madigan</span> Rugby player

Ian Madigan is an Irish former professional rugby union player for Ulster. His primary position is at fly-half, although he can also play at centre and full-back.

Andries Stephanus Ferreira is a South African rugby union player for the US Carcassonne in the Pro D2. His regular playing position is lock.

Ryno Joseph Barnes is a South African professional rugby union footballer, who most recently played with the Free State Cheetahs. His regular playing position is hooker.

Quinn Roux is a rugby union player who plays for Bath in the Premiership Rugby and formerly the Ireland national team. Born in South Africa, he qualified for Ireland through residency, made his international debut in 2016 and has won 16 caps. In 2018 he became an Irish citizen. He primarily plays as a lock.

Matthew Healy is an Irish former professional rugby union player. His primary position was on the wing and he was also used as injury cover at fullback, while earlier in his career he played at scrum-half. Healy played his entire career for Irish provincial team Connacht Rugby in the Pro14 and represented Ireland at test level once. He is Connacht's all-time leading try scorer.

Ockert Jacobus Jacques du Toit is a South African professional rugby union player for Zebre Parma in the United Rugby Championship, and previously for Bath in Premiership Rugby. His regular position is hooker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aranos Coetzee</span> Namibia international rugby union player

Johannes Voges 'Aranos' Coetzee is a Namibian rugby union player for the Cheetahs in the Pro14 and the Free State Cheetahs in the Currie Cup. His regular position is prop.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.