South Africa national rugby league team
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{{Infobox rugby league nation
| Name = South Africa
| Badge = South African Rugby League.png
| Badge_size = 100px
| Nickname = The Rhinos
| Association = South African Rugby League
| Region = [[Africa]]
| Coach = {{flagicon|South Africa}} [[Fanie Bredenhann]]
| Captain = {{flagicon|South Africa}} [[Francois Cloete]]
| Most caps =
| Top scorer =
| Home Stadium =
| RLIF Rank = 30th
| pattern_la1=|pattern_b1=_thinyellowsides|pattern_ra1=
| leftarm1=006400|body1=006400|rightarm1=006400|shorts1=000000|socks1=006400
| First game = {{flagicon|Great Britain}} [[Great Britain national rugby league team|Great Britain]] 49 - 30 South Africa {{flagicon|South Africa|1928}}<br/>([[Durban]], [[South Africa]]; [[23 August]] [[1962]])
| Largest win = {{flagicon|Italy}} [[Italy national rugby league team|Italy]] 6 - 42 South Africa {{flagicon|South Africa}}<br/>([[Venice, Italy]]; [[17 June]] [[2006]])
| Largest loss = {{flagicon|Australia}} [[Australia national rugby league team|Australia]] 86 - 6 South Africa {{flagicon|South Africa}}<br/>([[Gateshead]], [[England]]; [[10 October]] [[1995]])
| World cup apps = 2
| World cup first = 1995
| World cup best = Round 1, [[1995 Rugby League World Cup|1995]] and [[2000 Rugby League World Cup|2000]]
}}
The '''South Africa national rugby league team''' are a growing force in Rugby League, South Africa competes sporadically against other international nations because of their location and their absence from any major international competitions. They are the [[RLIF World Rankings|thirtieth-ranked team]] in the world currently, only slightly behind [[Estonia national rugby league team|Estonia]], [[Japan national rugby league team|Japan]] and [[Morocco national rugby league team|Morocco]] in the world rankings. South Africa to date have competed at two [[Rugby League World Cup]]s in [[1995 Rugby League World Cup|1995]] and [[2000 Rugby League World Cup|2000]] but to date have failed to win the competition.
Rugby league was originally introduced to South Africa in the 1950s with the staging of several series tournaments within the country that saw fixtures between the [[England national rugby league team|English]] and the [[France national rugby league team|French]] however this concept failed to generate the needed interest and was not upheld. The South Africans would not see further international rugby league until the 1960s where the first national side undertook fixtures against the visiting [[Great Britain national rugby league team|British]] and a tour to [[Australia]]. From the 1960s onwards the international fixture list for the South Africans would be minimal and it would not be until the early 1990s when they would begin to play with some lasting regularity.
Since they began playing international rugby league South Africa have always found it difficult to compete against the more established nations and so progress and improvement have been slow. Possibly their greatest achievement to date has been the qualification and participation in two [[Rugby League World Cup|World Cups]] in both [[1995 Rugby League World Cup|1995]] and [[2000 Rugby League World Cup|2000]] where South Africa would unfortunately fail to win a fixture after being seeded in tough groups at both tournaments where they would have to play world champions [[Australia national rugby league team|Australia]] along with [[England national rugby league team|England]], [[Fiji national rugby league team|Fiji]], [[France national rugby league team|France]], [[Papua New Guinea national rugby league team|Papua New Guinea]] and [[Tonga national rugby league team|Tonga]].
South Africa traditionally play in a predominately [[green]] uniform with [[black]] shorts, they have commonly been referred to as ''The Rhinos'' since the early 1990s. The South African emblem is a red and yellow [[Protea cynaroides|King Protea]] plant which is the national flower of South Africa. South African internationals are played at a variety of venues throughout the country with no singular home ground being used.
==History==
{{main|History of the South Africa national rugby league team}}
Rugby league would first gain attention in South Africa when the [[Rugby Football League|English]] and [[France|French]] would attempt expansion in the 1950s for the purpose of creating further international opposition<ref>[http://www.sarugbyleague.co.za/history.htm History of rugby league in South Africa] ''South African Rugby League'' Retrieved on [[18 May]] [[2007]].</ref>. Three games would then be played between the two nations on the continent but both sides viewed the matches as nothing more than friendly fixtures so never undertook the games in a serious manner and the public never subsequently took to the three exhibition games.
Over the next several years rugby league would lay dormant in South Africa and it was not until the 1960s where talks of creating a national side began. After much discussion within South Africa it was eventually agreed that a national side would play a touring [[Great Britain national rugby league team|Great Britain]] and then undertake a tour of [[Australasia]]. The first South African national side would play their first competitive fixture on [[August 23]] [[1962]] and would put on a good showing against the much stronger British but would eventually lose by nineteen points 49-30. The following two fixtures would turn out to be much the same with the South Africans being defeated on another two occasions but putting in good performances whilst never being comprehensively beaten. The South Africans would embark on their first tour eleven months later with a twenty-four man squad that included several former [[South Africa national rugby union team|Springboks]]. The tour would start with several friendly fixtures against various minor representative sides where they would gain two comfortable victories, the first international fixture of the tour would take place in Brisbane against the world champion Australians and the South Africans would perform with courage but eventually lose the match 34-6. The following test was played a week later in Sydney that again saw the team put in a tough effort but would lose again 54-21. South Africa would leave Australia without an international win and be low on confidence heading to [[New Zealand]] to play a sole fixture against the [[New Zealand national rugby league team|All Golds]] whom were expected to win comfortably. However the match turned out to be a tough encounter and surprisingly saw the team gain its first international victory 4-3<ref>[http://www2.hunterlink.net.au/~maajjs/sum/int1963.htm#SAF%20tour South African Tour of Australasia] ''International Competitions Website'' Retrieved on [[18 May]] [[2007]].</ref>.
After this first string of international fixtures the South Africans would become disheartened after only winning four of the thirteen tour matches and rugby league would again lay dormant for decades.
The early 1990s would see new South African administrators begin to rebuild the international facet of South African rugby. During 1992 the South African national side would again play for the first time in years against several combined African representative teams and the following years would see things look more promising for the Africans with their qualification into the [[1995 Rugby League World Cup|1995 World Cup]] and more regularity in international fixtures. Their first World Cup would see the South Africans seeded into the toughest group of the competition containing [[Australia national rugby league team|Australia]], [[England national rugby league team|England]] and [[Fiji national rugby league team|Fiji]]. The South Africans would find their three group matches extremely difficult and would fail to win a match during the tournament.
The following years saw the South Africans play on an inconsistent basis against several touring sides and qualify for their second consecutive [[2000 Rugby League World Cup|World Cup in 2000]]. Leading into the tournament they were hopeful of gaining their first Cup win after being drawn into an easier yet still competitive group with [[France national rugby league team|France]], [[Papua New Guinea national rugby league team|Papua New Guinea]] and [[Tonga national rugby league team|Tonga]]<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_league/world_cup_2000/group_3/973879.stm Rhinos aim to break duck] ''BBC Sport Website'' Retrieved on [[20 May]] [[2007]].</ref>. After initial optimism leading into the competition the South Africans would face Tonga in their first world cup fixture and be comprehensively beaten 66-18<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_league/world_cup_2000/group_3/996118.stm Tonga too strong for Rhinos] ''BBC Sport Website'' Retrieved on [[20 May]] [[2007]].</ref>. The following world cup matches would add further disappointment and diminish all optimism the South Africans originally had with further heavy losses to both Papua New Guinea<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_league/world_cup_2000/group_3/1002434.stm Kumuls see off dogged Rhinos] ''BBC Sport Website'' Retrieved on [[20 May]] [[2007]].</ref> and the French<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_league/world_cup_2000/group_3/1008504.stm French seal spot in last eight] ''BBC Sport Website'' Retrieved on [[20 May]] [[2007]].</ref>.
After a second disappointing World Cup the side would again begin playing irregularly with one off fixtures over the next several years and it would not be until 2006 when they would again undertake another tour. A tour to Italy would be undertaken in June of 2006 that saw the South Africans play in two tests and a [[Rugby league nines|nines]] competition in [[Montelanico]].
==2007 Squad==
Members of the South Africa national rugby league team have in the past been selected from the major leagues in [[Australia]] and [[Europe]] however in more recent times the squad has been made up solely of [[Rugby league in South Africa|domestic South African players]]. The most recent squad was selected for the tour to [[Italy national rugby league team|Italy]] in July of 2006.
''As of [[June 19]], [[2006]]
<table width="100%">
<tr>
<td valign="top">
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
|-
| bgcolor="006400" style="width:100px"|'''<font color="000000">No'''</font>|| bgcolor="006400" style="width:200px"|<center>'''<font color="000000">Player</center>'''</font>|| bgcolor="006400" style="width:150px"|'''<font color="000000">Position'''</font>|| bgcolor="006400" style="width:150px"|'''<font color="000000">Club'''</font>
|-
|1
|[[Francois Cloete]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Fullback]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Eastern]]
|-
|2
|[[Ewoud de clerck]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Wing]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Northern Gauteng]]
|-
|3
|[[Izak Meyer]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Centre]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Mpumalanga]]
|-
|4
|[[Roealle Strydom]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Centre]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Mpumalanga]]
|-
|5
|[[Barend Greyling]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Wing]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Northern Gauteng]]
|-
|6
|[[Ryno Nel]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Five-eighth]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Eastern]]
|-
|7
|[[Phillipus Nel]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Halfback]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Northern Gauteng]]
|-
|8
|[[Johan Burger]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Prop]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Eastern]]
|-
|9
|[[Johannes Rademeyer]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Hooker]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Northern Gauteng]]
|-
|10
|[[Esias Kotze]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Prop]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Mpumalanga]]
|-
|11
|[[Janco Blignaut]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Second Row]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Eastern]]
|-
|12
|[[Lloyd Cullen]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Second Row]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Mpumalanga]]
|-
|13
|[[Pieter Du Preez]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Loose forward]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Northern Gauteng]]
|-
|14
|[[Hercules Nel]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Prop]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Mpumalanga]]
|-
|15
|[[Gerhard Du Preez]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Second Row]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Northern Gauteng]]
|-
|16
|[[Egbertus Van den Broek]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Hooker]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Mpumalanga]]
|-
|17
|[[Ewald Viljoen]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Centre]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Eastern]]
|-
|18
|[[Johan Shadrick]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Prop]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Eastern]]
|-
|19
|[[Ampie Grieb]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Halfback]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Drakensberg]]
|-
|20
|[[Carlo Sneygans]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Wing]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Northern Gauteng]]
|-
|21
|[[Jonathan Soares]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Prop]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Northern Gauteng]]
|-
|22
|[[Jakobus Du Toit]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Second Row]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Mpumalanga]]
|-
|23
|[[Anthony Willemse]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Prop]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Eastern]]
|-
|24
|[[Frans Parsons]]
|[[Rugby league positions|Full back]]
|{{flagicon|South Africa}}[[Rugby league in South Africa|Northern Gauteng]]
|-
|}
== South African Rugby League Players ==
[[Weldon Saayman]]
[[Rubert Jonker]]
[[Sean Rutgerson]]
[[Michael Horak]]
[[Tom Van Vollenhoven]]
[[Jamie Bloem]]
[[Jarrod Saffy]]
[[Mario Du Toit]]
[[Len Killeen]]
==Notable players==
Since rugby league has been known to the nation of South Africa since the 1950s many players of South African birth or [[heritage]] have gone on to attain notability in representing either South Africa, other nations or appearing in major domestic leagues around the world, some of the more notable South Africans have included:
{| class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto"
! Player || Position || Association to South Africa || Distinctions
|-
| [[Fred Anderson]] || Hooker || Born [[Cape Town]] || Former South African Captain<br>Played for [[Canterbury Bulldogs|Canterbury]] & [[South Sydney Rabbitohs|South Sydney]]
|-
| [[Jamie Bloem]] || Fullback / Wing || Born [[Cape Town]] || Former South African Captain<br>1995 & 2000 World Cup appearances
|-
| [[Tom van Vollenhoven]] || Wing || Born [[South Africa]] || Debatably greatest South African player<br>Dual international
|}
==Honours==
*''None''
==See also==
* [[Rugby league in South Africa]]
==Footnotes==
{{reflist}}
==References==
*{{cite web |
title=South African Rugby League |
work=Rugby League 1908 |
url=http://rl1908.com/Rugby-League-News/south-africa.htm |
accessdate=20 May |
accessyear=2007}}
==External links==
;Official websites
* [http://www.sarugbyleague.co.za/ South African Rugby League Online]
{{International Rugby League}}
[[Category:International rugby league teams]]
[[Category:Rugby league in South Africa]]
[[Category:National sports teams of South Africa]]