This will be in honour of the legendary former Springbok, Dawie Snyman, who passed away on Thursday after a short battle with leukaemia, at the age of 76.

Snyman, who played in ten Tests for the Springboks, was born in Bloemfontein on 5 July 1949 and matriculated at Grey College, where he played 1st XV rugby for the famous school and also represented Free State in back-to-back Craven Weeks.

Dawie Snyman. Photo: Gallo Images

After school, he studied at the University of Stellenbosch, where he played for Maties and Western Province. During this time, he also served as an assistant coach at Paul Roos Gymnasium.

He went on to become a legendary Western Province coach, guiding the team to five consecutive Currie Cup titles from 1982 to 1986. He lifted the trophy once more in 1989 when Province shared the title with Northern Transvaal (now the Bulls).

Although Snyman never played for the senior Free State side, the Cheetahs have confirmed his legacy will be honoured on Saturday.

Western Province coach Labeeb Levy told OFM Sport the team will pay tribute to the man who left an indelible legacy at the union. He stressed the importance of educating today’s players about Snyman’s contribution to rugby in the Mother City and beyond.

“He was obviously a stalwart for Western Province in the 80s and had a fantastic record, winning all those Currie Cup titles, including five in a row.”  

Richard Kriel during the 2018 Grey vs. Paul Roos interschools in Bloemfontein. Photo: Morgan Piek

“I messaged his nephew (also Dawie Snyman, currently with the Stormers as assistant coach) to pass on my condolences to him and the family.

“We’ll probably look at doing something as a team. I’ve spoken to the manager about possibly wearing black armbands. We’ll certainly reflect on his immense contribution to rugby, not only in Western Province but also in South African rugby as a whole.

“We also want to educate the younger players, because when he was coaching Western Province, many of their parents were still at school, some even in primary school. So, they don’t really know much about him. We’ll make sure they understand the impact he made on the game and the union.”

Grey vs. Paul Roos in 2018. Photo: Morgan Piek

Snyman’s legacy will also be honoured at the Grey College vs. Paul Roos Gymnasium interschools clash between the two 1st XVs. That match at Grey kicks off at 14:00.

Saturday’s Currie Cup match between the Cheetahs and Western Province will also kick off at 14:00.

Cheetahs – 15 James Verity-Amm, 14 Banie Britz, 13 Marco Jansen van Vuren, 12 Ali Mgijima, 11 Cohen Jasper, 10 Franco Smith, 9 Rewan Kruger, 8 Neels Volschenk, 7 Mihlali Mosi, 6 Gideon van der Merwe, 5 Victor Sekekete (captain), 4 Juan Venter, 3 Aranos Coetzee, 2 Chucky van der Westhuizen, 1 Hencus van Wyk

Replacements – 16 Marko Janse van Rensburg, 17 Cameron Delport, 18 Frankie Dos Reis, 19 Thabang Mahlasi, 20 Sasko Ndlovu, 21 Jandré Nel, 22 Carel-Jan Coetzee, 23 Clayton Blommetjies

Western Province – 15 Tristan Leyds, 14 Shilton Van Wyk, 13 Gino Cupido, 12 Damian Markus, 11 Joel Leotlela, 10 Jurie Matthee, 9 Asad Moos, 8 Louw Nel, 7 Riley Norton, 6 Gideon Van Wyk, 5 Gary Porter (captain), 4 Alex Groves, 3 Zachary Porthen, 2 Scarra Ntubeni, 1 Mhleli Khuzwayo

Replacements – 16 Luca Bakkes, 17 Oliver Reid, 18 Herman Lubbe, 19 Adam De Waal, 20 Enos Ndiao, 21 Ezekiel Ngobeni, 22 Luke Burger, 23 Jared Africa

OFM Sport/Morgan Piek dg