Springbok lock Eben Etzebeth will become the most capped Springbok when he takes the field on Saturday against Argentina in the Castle Lager Rugby Championship finale, and while that is a massive achievement in itself, his teammates are looking forward to making it a major celebration.
A victory for the Boks will ensure they lift the Rugby Championship trophy, and give Etzebeth the perfect celebration in the Mpumalanga town to cap a stellar career.
It wasn’t difficult to find his teammates singing his praises this week as the build-up to the big game continues.
“Eben is a very respected man. He is very respected in this team, wherever he goes, off the field and on the field. He is a big family man,” hooker Bongi Mbonambi said about his teammate.
“If you talk to Eben about the Springbok environment, it’s a place he loves being in. He has given so much to this environment and this sport.”
Mbonambi has known Etzebeth for a long time. While he was in the Bulls’ junior ranks, they were part of the same SA under-20 team and have played together throughout their careers as part of a group that is the core that won two Rugby World Cups.
Those included Siya Kolisi, Steven Kitshoff and Frans Malherbe.
“To see him reach this milestone in his career, it’s pretty amazing,” Mbonambi said.
“Myself, Siya, Frans, a few of us have been playing with each other and against each other since junior-level rugby. Seeing how we’ve all grown and developed through the years, seeing someone like Eben, who we know very well, achieve this milestone is awesome.
“We know how special it is, and how special we are going to have to make it for him. It’s going to be an awesome weekend.”
MISUNDERSTOOD
Mbonambi said a lot of people misunderstood Etzebeth but his character shines through among his teammates.
“It has been a long journey together. We’ve created a lot of memories, good and bad. For me, Eben has always been a character. A lot of people who don’t know Eben think he is this serious guy. But he is actually one of the jokers in the team.
"He loosens the mood up when there’s too much tension. Also, when it is time to get serious, he’s the guy who knuckles down and makes things very personal.
"What I’ve learned from him is just to have a balance between the two. It can’t just be rugby and it can’t just be family. We are in a position where we have to get that balance as soon as possible. Sometimes you give so much to the rugby environment and your family suffers. Eben is the guy who has got a balance with that. That, for me, stands out about the man that he is.
“There’s a whole lot of memories that I could share, but I don’t think that’s for the mics,” he laughed.
Even coach Rassie Erasmus believes Etzebeth has something to play for, as the 2019 Rugby Championship victory was a shortened version of the tournament.
“It’s been a couple of years since we’ve won a full Rugby Championship and should we win, it will be fitting for Eben, who might not have achieved that – and it’s something he can maybe do on Saturday,” Erasmus said in announcing his team this week.
SIGNED AS A JUNIOR
He also reminisced about coaching Etzebeth since he was a junior.
“The first couple of players we signed in my time at Western Province were Siya, Eben, Kitsie and those guys.
“Eben didn’t have an agent and you earned a certain amount playing as a junior, and it went up when you played for the Stormers. He asked what the payment for Super Rugby was, and I asked him why, and he said because he thinks he is going to play Super Rugby.
“And there I thought this guy’s head was in the right place. But he didn’t play because he couldn’t at 18, although Kitsie did.
“Eben is one of the most competitive guys you can get. If we lose against one another or the other coaches when playing darts, then we owe the winner R200. He phoned me two months ago, saying I hadn’t paid his R200 yet.
“He is very competitive and doesn’t like to lose. He doesn’t like it when the team is not in the right frame of mind, or when people think we are not trying hard enough.
“We want to pay things back and give back to Eben too. If we can win the title and finish the competition with a victory, it would be a massive occasion for the team and Eben as an individual.”
WONDERFUL GUY
Those same thoughts were echoed by scrum coach Daan Human, who also said there was a misconception about Etzebeth from the outside.
“I still think he is a better person than a player,” Human said. “He is a wonderful guy. He is the most coachable player in the side. He has the most caps at the moment and might be the most-capped player in South Africa on Saturday.
“But he is a good guy, feet on the ground, always willing to learn and a team man. If there is one guy I can think of, if you look at a Springbok, it is Eben Etzebeth standing out.
“He is a great example for all the youngsters and the whole team. He is the one guy that always puts the Springboks first.”
Jaden Hendrikse had, as most scrumhalves do, the last word on Etzebeth this week.
“It’s a massive milestone to become the most capped Springbok. I remember watching him play as an 11-year-old boy, so I’m very proud of him with the rest of the team.”