Francois pienaar autobiography range

After the inauguration of South Africa in and its introduction to the international game of rugby, Francois Pienaar played a pinnacle role in the development of the sport and shock World Cup success just three years later. A born leader, he was appointed captain for his first international appearance and he maintained this role in all of the 29 games played for his country.

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With Pienaar at the helm, the Springboks enjoyed 15 successive Test victories between - , and he is widely recognised as one of the most inspirational captains in the history of the game. Nine years later, his home country would also vote him 50th in a poll naming the top South Africans. He retired from the game in and, in , he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Hertfordshire.

Demonstrating natural leadership skills and a keen enthusiasm for a variety of sports, he was awarded an athletics scholarship at the Rand Afrikaner University in Johannesberg, where he undertook a Law degree upon completion of schooling. It was rugby which really captured his attention though and he was a regular spectator at local Transvaal rugby matches during his university years.

Spending evenings watching their training sessions and learning new skills, little did he know that he would debut for the side in He would go on to make appearances for Transvaal as a flanker, captaining the team on 89 occasions and enjoying victories in the Currie Cup in and , the Lion Cup, the Super 10 and the Night Series. The South African Rugby Football Union was formed in and the team, omitting Pienaar from selection at this stage, joined their new Southern Hemisphere rivals, Australia and New Zealand, in a Test match to mark the occasion.

Pienaar was given the opportunity to represent his country in the following year and he made his first appearance for the Springboks. After four wins with the national side, and the retirement of captain Naas Botha , South African coach Ian McIntosh named newcomer Pienaar as the player to fill this prestigious position. In the first two games against France, they drew one and lost one and in the following Test, they lost two out of the three games played in Sydney.

At the end of the season, Pienaar led the team to two victories against the Argentinians and, in , his instrumental role in the development of the South African squad earned him Captain of the Year, awarded by the Australian International Rugby Review. Pienaar continued to impress in the national team too, with Transvaal retaining the Currie Cup in and, in , the country looked forward to its first World Cup despite entering the tournament as the underdog.