DUANE VERMEULEN was ready to hang up his boots in 2021. The Boks No 8 had targeted the Lions series as his swansong, before an ankle injury crushed a childhood dream to face the famous tourists.
Apart from that one regret, he was ready to say goodbye. Having won the World Cup and Rugby Championship, the then 35-year-old had nothing left to prove. But as he headed for the exit, he found his way blocked by the men who had kick-started his pro career some 15 years earlier.
“Rassie Erasmus and Jacques Nienaber asked me to stay on until 2023,” he says. “I live for my rugby – it’s who I am – and I have a burning passion for the Boks. So naturally, I accepted their offer.
“Covid also played a role in my decision. We had a lot of time off after the 2019 World Cup, and a lot of time to rest our bodies.
“The negative is that we lost match sharpness. It took a while to get that back. So while I accepted the offer, I made it clear I didn’t want them to carry me if I wasn’t pulling my weight.”
Bu hikaye Rugby World dergisinin October 2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Rugby World dergisinin October 2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
"I remember getting eating guidelines for Christmas Day!"
CHRISTMAS, the most wonderful time of the year? Not if you’re a professional rugby player it’s not.
Rugby firsts
FIRST RUGBY match you went to? I would have gone to RODNEY PARADE to watch a Newport game when I was about six years old, so around 1992 or 1993.
THE JOHN FISHER STATE SCHOOL RUGBY FESTIVAL
The inaugural John Fisher Rugby Festival hopes to Send state-school rugby players into the stratosphere.
The Making Of Robbie Henshaw
How this small-town boy went On to become a big-time player
RG SNYMAN
The giant Springbok is enjoying the best of both worlds since joining Leinster
BENHARD JANSE VAN RENSBURG
Bristol's South African centre has one eye on an England call-up in 2026
RUGBY RANT
Jessica Hayden, author of The Red Roses, says the women’s game can handle criticism
WHAT IT'S LIKE TO ...GO ON TOUR WITH EMERGING IRELAND
Munster's Ben O'Connor tells RW about the eye-opening trip to South Africa
"Welsh rugby treats players like pieces of meat, not assets"
THEY’VE BUILT the women’s game around the men’s game in Wales but it has to be its own thing.
"I don't believe in dinosaurs – the boys think it's nuts!"
The Exeter Chiefs hooker talks Tarmac, time travel and Tyson Fury