#2. Bakkies Botha
- Born September 22, 1979, Newcastle, Natal
- Major teams Barbarians, Blue Bulls, Bulls, South Africa A, Toulon, South Africa
- Position Lock
The second row enforcer in South Africa’s World Cup winning team of 2007, this was a man you didn’t mess around with. Rounded off his career with three European Cup wins with Toulon.
Jones said: “He revelled in it didn’t he. Physically he has to be up there. Let’s just say he was able to keep the tradition going of the hardest of South African second rows. It was simply brutal.”
Bakkies Botha facts:
- Botha is the only player in the history of rugby union to date to have won a hat trick of Super Rugby and European rugby titles
- His name is actually John
- Botha was also a member of the Toulon squad which won the 2013, 2014 and 2015 Heineken Cup/European Rugby Champions Cup Finals
- As of 2019 Botha runs a butchery business in South Africa called “Bakkies the Butcher”
- Voted by the French publication Midi Olympique in 2013 as the best No. 4 lock to ever play the game
Source: Youtube