Springbok Legend Dawie De Villiers Passes Away At the Age of 81

• Springbok rugby legend Dawie de Villiers, one of the greatest ever scrumhalves, passed away last night at the age of 81
• De Villiers played for the Springboks in the 1960s and early 1970s, earning 25 international caps with the team
• His passing compounded a weekend of mourning for the South African rugby after the tragic death of Pedrie Wannenburg in the United States

The great former Springbok captain Dawie de Villiers passed away at the age of 81 last night.

His family said in a statement that de Villiers died at his Stellenbosch home, having been ill for some time.

According to Sport24, the statement read:

"Dawie has been systematically deteriorating over the last few months, but we were privileged to be able to provide him with the assistance of professional help at home."

De Villiers played 25 Test matches for South Africa between 1962 and 1970, establishing himself as one of the game's greatest ever scrumhalves. Satisfyingly, he captained the Springboks to a 20-17 victory over arch-rivals the All Blacks at Ellis Park in his last match, which sealed a 3-1 series win

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In his provincial career, he played for Boland, Western Province and Transvaal, the latter now known as the Lions. De Villiers later became an ordained minister in the Dutch Reformed Church, while also making a foray into politics.

He was immortalised in The Bats' famous hit song 'Groen en Goud (Vat Hom Dawie)'.

De Villiers' former Bok teammate HO de Villiers passed away in February at the age of 76.

Former Blue Bulls and Springbok player Pedrie Wannenburg dies in US car crash

The rugby fraternity is mourning after the tragic death of former Bulls and Springbok player Pedrie Wannenburg in a car accident.

As reported on Sports Brief, Wannenburg was travelling with his family in Texas, United States when he lost his life in a multi-vehicle crash after a high-speed police chase that had nothing to do with him.

local police confirmed that a 16-year-old suspect was arrested in connection with the incident. Sheriff Ed Gonzalez of Harris County said that the suspect did not pull over after being requested to by police, instead speeding off with the cops in pursuit.