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When an eminent panel of South African rugby experts had to decide on the 'Player of the 20th Century' in late 2000, the decision was easy. Who else than the great Northern Transvaal and Springbok lock forward, Frik Du Preez. Du Preez is to South African rugby what his great rival Colin Meads is to New Zealand rugby a gallant, legendary and iconic figure. He epitomised, with his commitment to any team for which he played, at club, provincial and international levels, all of rugby's finest values. Du Preez first came to public attention in 1956 when, as a young air force officer, he out-jumped and out-punched the fearsome Springbok lock Salty Du-Randt in a match between his Defence Force XV and Pretoria.
The performance earmarked him as a top prospect, but it was another two years before he was chosen for Northern Transvaal seniors. In 1960 Du Preez so totally dominated the forward exchanges in the match between the Defence Force XV and the touring All Blacks (which the Forces won 8-6) that he was selected for the Springbok tour of Britain late that year. He fulfilled his lifetime ambition of pulling on the Springbok shirt in the tour match against Southern Counties, a game in which he scored two tries. Frik broke down and wept with joy when selected to play his first test for the Springboks on 7th January 1961 at the age of 25, against England at Twickenham.
The Springboks won 50, with Du Preez converting a try to score his first test points. He quickly developed into the dominant forward in world rugby and a truly exceptional player. A phenomenal work-rate and uncompromising tackling were features of his play and his technique in both lineout and scrum were faultless. But it was in the loose that he set himself apart, combining lightning pace with the guile and ball-handling skills of a back. He displayed his skill and sheer audacity by winning several games for the Blue Bulls with long-range drop goals. Even place-kicking came naturally to him and he was often entrusted by the Springboks with this duty. He was an athlete ahead of his time, with an ability to raise his game to another level when circumstances demanded it the sign of a truly great player.
The bigger the occasion the greater an impact the talismanic lock made. Always a fearsome competitor, his immense physicality on the field was in stark contrast to his kind and courteous demeanour off it. Mention Frik Du Preez's name to many British rugby fans and it evokes images of the powerful Springbok in the first test against the 1968 Lions at Loftus Versveld, Pretoria, storming around the front of a lineout and thundering 40 metres downfield, outsprinting the Lions backs, to score one of Bok rugby's most celebrated tries. Other unforgettable images for South African fans are of Du Preez demoralising a star-studded Western Province side at Loftus Versveld in 1969, first kicking a monster penalty from five metres inside his own half, then scoring a try with a scintillating run, and finally landing a drop goal from 40 metres. Unusually for a player of his era, when rugby was dominated by provincial rivalry, Frik was revered all over South Africa.
After he played his last ever match for the Blue Bulls at Newlands in 1971, the Western Province supporters invaded the pitch and carried Du Preez off shoulder-high. South African fans will appreciate how rare that is! When he played his last test against Australia on 7th August 1971 at the age of 35, he held the record for the most test matches played for South Africa, with 38 appearances. In total he wore the Green and Gold in 87 games and scored 87 points. Du Preez represented South Africa for 10 years and had he played in the modern professional era with at least 12 tests a year, would surely have exceeded 100 caps.
When the International Rugby Board's Rugby Hall of Fame came into being in 1997, Frik Du Preez and Danie Craven were the only South Africans to be elected into it. In a 2003 poll by Rugby World Magazine, Frik was voted as one of the 10 greatest players of all time. Dr Danie Craven once wrote: "Frik is a once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon. I don't know if Frik himself ever realised how much he was capable of. To my mind he could have played any position on a rugby field with equal brilliance." As a sporting icon Frik Du Preez is South Africa's equivalent of Australia's Don Bradman, the USA's Babe Ruth, or New Zealand's Colin "Pinetree" Meads. (Malcolm Finch).
As expression of the esteem that he is held in by South African rugby fans, Du Preez was named the country's rugby Player of the 20th Century.
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