this post is related to matt stevens, the prop who was on the bench vs IRELAND>
The 21-year-old Stevens, a former student at the University of Cape Town, hails from Durban in South Africa, but he moved to the United Kingdom in September 2002 - primarily to study at Bath University.
Having played for SA at Under-19 level and narrowly missing out on the World Cup-winning SA U21 side in 2002, rugby was obviously also on Stevens's mind when he left for England and it certainly came to the forefront quite early after his arrival in the UK, with the England U21 scouts snapping him up pretty quickly.
"England gave Matt an opportunity," continued Stevens senior. "It was a difficult choice for him to make, but it's a professional game and it seems South Africa woke up only after they saw they would be losing Matt to England.
"English rugby is very professional - and that's the difference between them and South Africa. They have nurtured Matt at Bath and he was never thrown to the wolves."
Stevens, of course, follows in the footsteps of many South Africans who have played for England, with two of the most recent - Stuart Abbott and Mike Catt - having been part of England's victorious Rugby World Cup squad last year.
The first South African to play for England was Frederick John van der Byl Hopley, in 1907/08, while Catt is the most-capped SA-born English player.
yet another good sa rugby player lost to sa rugby. |