Theuns_Briers
Theuns Briers
South African rugby union player
Theunis Petrus Daniël Briers (11 July 1929 – 7 October 2018) was a South African rugby union player.[1]
Briers in New Zealand in 1956 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth name | Theunis Petrus Daniël Briers | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1929-07-11)11 July 1929 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Paarl, South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of death | 7 October 2018(2018-10-07) (aged 89) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of death | Bloubergstrand, South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 88.5 kg (195 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Paarl Boys' High School | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Briers matriculated at Paarl Boys' High School and played club rugby for the Paarl RC. He made his provincial debut for Western Province in 1953 was a member the Western Province Currie Cup winning teams in 1954 and 1959.[2]
Briers made his test match debut for South Africa against Robin Thompson's British Lions side in 1955 at Ellis Park in front of over 90,000 fans and scored two tries. He initially declared himself unavailable for the Springbok tour to Australia and New Zealand in 1956, but was called up as a replacement and joined the tour in time for the second test against the All Blacks.[3] Briers also played in 5 tour matches during the New Zealand leg of the tour and scored 4 tries.[4]
Test history
| No. | Opponents | Results (SA 1st) | Position | Tries | Dates | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |  British Lions | 25–9 | Wing | 2 | 6 Aug 1955 | Ellis Park, Johannesburg |
| 2. | British Lions | 6–9 | Wing | 1 | 20 Aug 1955 | Newlands, Cape Town |
| 3. | British Lions | 6–9 | Wing | 3 Sep 1955 | Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria | |
| 4. | British Lions | 22–8 | Wing | 2 | 24 Sep 1955 | Crusaders Ground, Port Elizabeth |
| 5. |  New Zealand | 8–3 | Wing | 4 Aug 1956 | Athletic Park, Wellington | |
| 6. | New Zealand | 10–17 | Wing | 18 Aug 1956 | Lancaster Park, Christchurch | |
| 7. | New Zealand | 5–11 | Wing | 1 Sep 1956 | Eden Park, Auckland |
- List of South Africa national rugby union players – Springbok no. 313
- "Theuns Briers". ESPN scrum. Retrieved 1 August 2021.
- Heath, Duane (2019). South African Rugby Annual 2019. Cape Town: South African Rugby. pp. 468–469. ISBN 978-0620818087. OCLC 1089860189.
- Jooste, Graham K. (1995). South African rugby test players 1949-1995. Johannesburg: Penguin. pp. 14–23. ISBN 0140250174. OCLC 36916860.
- Heath, Duane; Grieb, Eddie; Smit, Kobus (2020). South African Rugby Annual 2020. Cape Town: South African Rugby Union. p. 234. ISBN 9780620872041.