Loyalty is Bok iron man’s legacy

DANIE Rossouw has never been a man of many words, so it was fitting that his illustrious career came to a close with little fanfare and fuss.

Rossouw, 36, was on the bench for Toulon in the French Top 14 final against Castres last weekend. He never made it on to the field, with coach Bernard Laporte inexplicably denying him the honour of a few minutes during the 18-10 victory.

“Ja, that was pretty sad,” said Bakkies Botha about Laporte’s decision. “But Danie took it in his stride.”

It’s an attitude that sums up Rossouw’s approach to his successful career, which is unmatched by any South African in the modern era.

If the coach wanted him to play No 5 lock, blindside flank, No 8, No 4 lock or sit on the bench, he did it without complaint.

Fifteen years on and 16 titles, won from Pretoria to Tokyo to the south of France, Rossouw bowed out much as he arrived in the professional game — quietly.

Besides the glittering collection of titles, from the humble 2001 Vodacom Cup to the 2007 World Cup, it was Rossouw’s individual contribution to games that often changed them.

His tackle on England wing Mark Cueto during the 2007 World Cup final in Paris — a desperate lunge in which he did just enough to knock the flyer’s foot on to the touchline — stopped England gaining a hold on the desperately tense game. It was a microcosm of his value.

There were many such moments for the Boks, Bulls, Suntory and Toulon, but there were crushingly low times too.

During the 2011 World Cup quarterfinal in Wellington against Australia, Rossouw conceded a 71st-minute lineout penalty that put the Wallabies 11-9 ahead. It remained the final score.

“I didn’t play the man in the air, which is what the touch judge reported,” Rossouw said after the game.

“For me, it’s personally devastating. It’s all over.”

His 63-test Springbok career ended after that, but by choice, not because he was blamed for the loss and dropped.

“No one in the Bok team held that penalty against

I thought, I’ve lost him, but he stayed on because he believed in what we were working towards

him,” long-time teammate Victor Matfield said.

Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer believes that what set Rossouw apart was his willingness to always put the team first.

“Danie was always about the team, even from the earliest days when I recruited him as a skinny No 8 from Tukkies at a time when no one wanted to come to the Blue Bulls,” Meyer said.

“He and Bakkies [Botha] rotated a lot in the early years and the Sharks eventually came with a huge offer, which was more than double what Danie was earning at the time.

“I thought, I’ve lost him, but he stayed on because he believed in what we were working towards and in the culture of the team.”