Pierre Spies
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| Height | 1.94 m (6 ft 4+1⁄2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Weight | 111 kg (17 st 7 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Afrikaanse Hoër Seunskool | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Pierre Johan Spies (born 8 June 1985 in Pretoria, South Africa) is a South African rugby union player. His usual position is number 8 (but can cover flank or wing), where he plays for the Vodacom Bulls in the international Super 14 competition. He has represented the Springboks since 2006.
He made his debut for the Blue Bulls in 2005 in a match against the Griquas.[1] Spies made his Super 12 debut against the Brumbies, becoming the youngest player ever to represent the Bulls. After being injured in his first ever Super 12 match, he made his comeback through the national under-21 league, where he scored nine tries in just six games.
Although he plays as a loose forward, he has considerable pace, having been timed at 10.7 seconds over 100m. This is especially impressive considering his size (194 cm tall and 111 kg); he has played wing for the Bulls and Springboks when they experienced an injury crisis. Spies is known as one of the best ball carriers in the game - he can step, run around or over a defender.
Spies power cleans 135kg. He dead lifts 240kg. He bench presses 165kg. Only mildly impressed? Wait, here are some more. He is able to do pull-ups with a 50kg weight between his legs. He can launch his 108kg body 1.4m onto a raised platform, sprints for 835m before slowing on a repeated sprint-ability test and has a body-fat percentage of 6.5. —Ryan Vrede, Keo.co.za[2]
After starring for the U21 Springbok side that played in the U21 Rugby World Cup France last year, Spies made his debut in the Springbok's 49 - 0 drubbing at the hands of Australia in the 2006 Tri Nations. Spies was largely anonymous in that game, however, Springbok coach Jake White picked him again for the home-leg of the tournament. There, Spies turned in two Man of the Match performances, most notably in the win over the All Blacks in Rustenburg, and in the victory over Australia in Durban.
He was widely praised for these performances against world-class oppostion, but unfortunately was injured in a dismal Springbok showing against Ireland on the end of year tour. This injury ruled him out for the rest of the tour, as well as much of the 2007 Super 14 competition, but has since made his comeback for the Bulls in their 49 - 12 victory over southern rivals the Stormers.
Spies was believed to be a certainty for Jake White's squad for the 2007 Rugby World Cup to be played in France in September, and his selection was confirmed on 21 July. However, nine days later, he was forced to withdraw from the World Cup squad after blood clots were found in his lungs. After a check up with another health expert, it was stated that Spies could return to the World Cup squad if a third opinion was positive.[3] However, the third opinion confirmed the original diagnosis, and Spies remained off the team.[4] He returned to the Springboks' team for the 2008 June internationals against Wales.
While being in treatment and under the eye of the team’s physicians, Pierre kept on training and as soon as he received the green light, he returned to competitive rugby . That year he was nominated SA Currie Cup Player of the Year, SA Player of the Year, International Player of the Year and got the award for SA’s most Promising Player of the Year, as well as Sportsman of the Year.[citation needed]
He married Juanne Weidemann, in December 2008.
In 2009, he played well in the Super 14 and was selected for the Springboks to play against the British & Irish Lions. He was also selected for the end of the year tour, but injured his finger and was ruled out.
Notes and references
- ^ "Who's Who of Southern Africa" (HTML). 24.com. Retrieved 2009-06-06.
- ^ "Spies's cognitive evolution". Keo. 2009-05-15. Retrieved 2009-05-24.
- ^ "Springbok Spies to miss World Cup". BBC Sport. 2007-07-30. Retrieved 2007-07-31.
- ^ "SA Rugby Statement on Pierre Spies". South African Rugby Union. 2007-08-14. Retrieved 2007-08-14.
External links
- "SA Rugby Player Profile – Pierre Spies". South African Rugby Union.
- Pierre Spies on sarugby.com
- Pierre Spies Super 14 Stats
- Pierre Spies Tri-Nations Stats
- Pierre Spies on bluebulls.co.za
- Pierre Spies to debut for the Bulls
- Pierre Spies personal website