Andrews’ mark eclipsed
20 Jul 2006
Legendary lock Mark Andrews will see his place as the second most capped Springbok of all time eclipsed by Percy Montgomery on Saturday.
Andrews who jets out to Wellington today to watch the Vodacom Tri-Nations game said it was an incredible feat as he knows the sacrifices it took to reach the milestone of 77 Tests.
Andrews was the first man to reach the 50 Test mark for the Springboks and went on to play another 27 times for his country, 12 behind No 1 Joost van der Westhuyzen who has 89 Test caps.
On Saturday, fullback Percy Montgomery will earn his 78th Test cap. It will be his 81st appearance in a Springbok jersey – which is fourth on the all-time list.
“I’m proud to have played 77 times for my country, but it would be unfair of me to say that I’m prouder than a guy that played ten tests or even one Test,” Andrews told keo.co.za shortly before boarding the plane.
“In South Africa it is more difficult to reach the 50 Test mark as we have had so many coaches who change personnel regularly. I had six different coaches in seven years.”
“I never played for the records. I just played to play my best and I managed to stay there for 77 matches. It’s not really an issue for me,†he said.
Also on Saturday, Victor Matfield will become the ninth player to reach the half century mark in Tests for the Boks, while Os du Randt equals Andre Venter as the fourth most capped Test Bok on 66 Tests.
Most capped Test Boks of all-time (ahead of Wellington Test):
Joost van der Westhuizen 89
Mark Andrews 77
Percy Montgomery 77
Andre Venter 66
Os du Randt 65
Breyton Paulse 58
John Smit 55
Ollie le Roux 54
Victor Matfield 49
By Andrew Hollely

43 Comments
20 Jul 2006, 11:34 am
Brilliant headline. Andrew you guys got a machine with a ‘punny; button on it?
20 Jul 2006, 11:37 am
Andrews was a legend…
20 Jul 2006, 11:37 am
Wonder which player out of the current squad will get close to Joost’s record??
20 Jul 2006, 11:37 am
for all the ribbing we give monty, he has been a revelation and the one consistent performer for the boks.
20 Jul 2006, 11:39 am
Percy 77 & tests no high ball. What a bouytjie.
20 Jul 2006, 11:40 am
Spook 3,
Steaddie Eddie
20 Jul 2006, 11:40 am
See Bill Young retired officially…
20 Jul 2006, 11:42 am
Staal
I thought Shimange or Jaco!!
20 Jul 2006, 11:44 am
No Red, that was all me!! They come out about once every 37 days…
20 Jul 2006, 11:45 am
Wish someone would get passed Joost his last 15 test were thourghly undeserved !
20 Jul 2006, 11:45 am
Regarding post no. 3
It is an easy question to answer!!!
The guy is Jaco van der Westhuizen !!!
According to Jake the guy just had a bad day at the office and he will be back. Apperently he is a world class flyhalf….
We just dont look at him the same way Jake looks at him. Apperently he’s got a lot of good qualities (skills) that has not surfaced yet…
20 Jul 2006, 11:45 am
Monty will do it, Ig!
20 Jul 2006, 11:49 am
Ig ..Os will do it…it might take another 12yrs but I’m sure he can last
20 Jul 2006, 11:51 am
Mayne not the point… but hell Olies now gone BIG!
20 Jul 2006, 11:52 am
Spook, If Monty plays the ful 3N, end of year tour and world cup, he will reach a minimum of 91.
20 Jul 2006, 11:53 am
Ig almost like Jaco’s last 15 tests then?
20 Jul 2006, 11:53 am
15 Sampioenman, eggenee asb tog nie.
20 Jul 2006, 11:55 am
Sampioenman
But will he play in all those games, sure Jake will rest during the World Cup.
20 Jul 2006, 11:55 am
Ig never mind the last 15 matches, but the comments he makes as a commentator is even k@kker!
20 Jul 2006, 11:57 am
eloise….very true. Joost must be the most eloquent commentator behind Naas. The na agin Naas occasionally thinks of somfink new to say.
Red…….pretty much !
20 Jul 2006, 12:03 pm
Andrews was a good player. Bad, bad attitude in the latter stages of his career … endless niggling, dirty and off the ball tactics.
20 Jul 2006, 12:09 pm
Not that its Montegomerys problem but there really hasnt been any real classy competition for
the 15 position over the last few years.
we are somewhat lacking class players at both 10 and 15
oh may as well add at 11 12 13 14 as well,
we havn’t been able to compete against the AB and Wallabies backs for a while now.
20 Jul 2006, 12:26 pm
so its Matfileds 50th this weekend?
lets hope he puts up and does what he does best.
cause recently he has been pretty ordinery
20 Jul 2006, 12:36 pm
Ig
And Monty’s caps are all deserved?????
20 Jul 2006, 12:44 pm
If monty can last this long in a bok jersey don’t write off Jaco yet.
20 Jul 2006, 12:47 pm
Jaco will make 100 caps – in a Japanese jersey – once the JRU find a loophole in IRB rules to make him eligble. Maybe the Boks will make it easier for them by denying that he ever played for them?
20 Jul 2006, 12:50 pm
Monty desearves to be there, he does far more good than bad, just wish he would run at the opposition a bit more. he always makes up ground.
thaught JACO was good, in 2004 since then he really should go back to Japan (if they would take him.
20 Jul 2006, 12:51 pm
man Jaco must be seen as a beast back in Japan.
20 Jul 2006, 13:03 pm
Go Pissy Montgomery!!!
20 Jul 2006, 13:04 pm
Percy ‘esmy’ Montgommery.
‘esmy’
‘esmy’ hare nog reg?
20 Jul 2006, 13:09 pm
Andrew
While your busy with the great headlines dont you want to tell us about Mark Andrews’ incredible feet – are they very big, long and narrow, broad, etc…?
20 Jul 2006, 13:18 pm
Joost on 89??? That’s 88 to much… Ok, bit unfair. He was a good player but he milked the last few seasons. Still he was better at playing the game than talking about it. Joost you Huisgennot pin-up you…
20 Jul 2006, 13:18 pm
= huuuuge willy
20 Jul 2006, 13:21 pm
Andrew – is it an incredible ‘feet’ or an incredible feat?
20 Jul 2006, 13:42 pm
joos and andrews were legends and always will br lets leave the but after
se the good they did , it far succumed the bad
20 Jul 2006, 13:44 pm
Mark Andrews, was a great lock until he lost his marbles and started blikseming everyone in his later years. I think Robin Brooke for NZ was very underrated and John Eales was the Andre Jubba of all the locks in that era. Like Frik Du Preez, hy het geplace, gedrop and gescore. Effortless grace for a 2nd rower.
20 Jul 2006, 16:04 pm
>>>Hey ADNREW.. quick heads up :
“incredible FEAT, not feet…
20 Jul 2006, 17:16 pm
Hats off to Percy, he racked up 78 tests without having to make a tackle and he has yet to learn how to field an up and under.
Mark Andrews never gave an inch and gave a hard edge to any team he played for. Respect.
20 Jul 2006, 17:39 pm
This is really sad.
Mark deserves to be be beaten by a real legend and not a mofgat like this.
20 Jul 2006, 17:41 pm
r0d – that comment was made at 1:21pm……try be a bit more original pal!
20 Jul 2006, 17:54 pm
Dood
Is that the best you can do.
Add value to the site please boet.
20 Jul 2006, 18:32 pm
hobbo
It does add value to the site big guy.If people do not repeat what has already been said then surely that is more valuable than 10 people crapping on about the same thing.
This isn’t a grade one class jim,I thought you would have picked up on that!
21 Jul 2006, 03:09 am
and what a crying shame to have your mark eclipsed by someone as sad and useless as percy.
percy isn’t the best fullback in the sharks backline keo you psycophant twat, let alone the country and let alone best ever.
after last saturdays game there was not a lot to be happy about and all i could feel was an enormous amount of anger at everyone from the aussies who i would have to face at work on monday to jake to the players to the administrators and so on and so on. deep brute mute anger, ie there was nowhere specific to focus this anger and nothing to do about it.
aaaah, until i remembered you keo, saying that percy was the best fullback in the world. ah, a ray of light. someone legitimate to get really really cross at.
of course it was completely off target and we didn’t lose the game because of such a stupid remark, and we didn’t even lose the game entirely because of percy. but hey, he did his usual girls-blouse stuff and it reminded me of you keo. worlds best fullback. do you have any, any idea of what a moron this says you are? do you have the vaguest notion of how monumentally stupid a statement this is?? i know you look like a hobbit, but do you actually live in a hole in the ground? the worlds best fullback???? do you get a migrane everytime you remember your collosal stupidity making this statement? what do you think EVERY ******* WEEK as you see percy spill the pill, have it bounce off his HEAD, throw himself energetically to the ground one metre BEHIND the opposition ball carrier, and then stand there with that vintage percy long faced look like he’s so surprised he’s such a twat.
now in fairness, he’s not to blame if he keeps being chosen. but YOU keo, what the hell is your excuse? the worlds best fullback!!!??? are you able to clothe ad feed yourself and cross the road and all? because if you are capapble of these very basic functions you surely must be the biggest piss taker on the face of the planet with a comment like that. it was all a joke yeah??
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