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Dream come true for brothers
11/07/2007 22:12 - (SA)
Liam Del Carme , Beeld
Christchurch - When Jannie and Bismarck du Plessis were little boys, they dreamed of playing rugby for South Africa; of being in the same Springbok team.
They also learnt at at early age that dreams should not be left to coincidence. One must work to make your dreams come true.
Now there are looking forward to realising their dream of playing, in the same team, against New Zealand.
The burly brothers, who have been included in the Springbok team for the Tri-Nations Test here on Saturday, were in the team that lost to Australia in Sydney last week but that was different.
Jannie, the prop, was in the starting line-up. Bismarck, the hooker, joined him from the substitutes bench.
They come from a family with strong rugby ties, says Jannie, a medical doctor who is doing his community service year.
Their uncle, also Jannie, was the founder of the rugby club at Bethlehem in the Free State and hosted the 1970 All Blacks on his farm.
It is unlikely they will enjoy the sort of reception here on Saturday that Brian Lochore's All Blacks experienced on the Du Plessis farm.
Bismark can hardly believe what has happened. "Just to be on this tour is special. It was nice to play in the same team last week. It will be even more special if we win on Saturday," he says.
Turned out for the Shimlas
He was in the Springbok squad for the home Tri-Nations matches and even though things have changed so much that people now speak of the South African B team, it does not bother him.
"Just to be able to put on the Springbok jersey is such a honour that you don't worry about who else is in the team."
The brothers were also teammates at university; the last time in 2004 when they turned out for the Shimlas against the Pukke.
"We were in the same team more often in 2003 when we were in the university's second team," Bismarck recalls.
Saturday is also a big day for Bloemfontein's Grey College, where the two matriculated. The whole Springbok front row, with CJ van der Linde next to the brothers, are former Grey pupils.
This is a great honour for the school. I was there two years after my brother. Ruan Pienaar (the Springbok scrumhalf) and I played for the school at the same time, says Bismarck."
Before the tour, Bismarck had to wait for an opportunity to play while Springbok captain John Smit occupied the hooker position. "I have only respect for John. We are good mates. I have learnt a lot from him, particularly about the psychological aspects. He is always calm.
"To me, it is a challenge to compete in this position but not to the extent that we cannot remain friends. If one plays well, the other one will hopefully do the same.
"In 15 Super 14 matches, I was in the starting team in four and on the bench in the 11 others but I played in all the matches."
Johann Muller, who will captain the Springboks on Saturday, says the brothers are close. "It is fantastic that they can be in the same Springbok team because it has been a dream of theirs for a long time," Muller says.
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