South African rugby fans recently found themselves having a bitter pill to swallow following the unexpected retirement of Springbok and Stormers prop Steven Kitshoff.
The announcement of his retirement came at a time when many of his fans felt a sense of hope that they would one day see the red-haired number 1 running on the field for his club and country.
Steven has been out of rugby for several months now. Last year, he suffered a neck injury during a training session at his local club Western Province, after returning from a brief stint in Ireland at Ulster.
At the time, he highlighted that doctors warned that the injury was one that nearly cost him his life.
“It was just another scrum, then three cracking sounds – pop, pop, pop,” he recalled. “I played on, thinking it was a muscle strain.
“Today I know, I was two millimetres from a catastrophe, from my death,” he previously revealed.
In a statement shared on social media platforms, he said: “Playing rugby has been my life from a young age, and I was lucky enough to live the dream of many young boys by representing the Springboks and the DHL Stormers.
“It is obviously incredibly disappointing for my career to end in this way, but unfortunately, the risk to my wellbeing was simply too high.
“I really wanted to finish my story with the DHL Stormers on the pitch and gave the rehab and comeback the best shot I could, but it was not to be,” he said.
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Despite the reality that he will now no longer feature in the green and gold of the Springboks come the 2027 World Cup, the former Paul Roos pupil boasts an illustrious career, having experienced abundant success.
He has 138 caps for the DHL Stormers and has also represented the Springboks on 83 occasions, winning two World Cups, a Castle Lager Rugby Championship, and a British and Irish Lions Series. In addition to this, he was also part of the team that won the Under 20 Rugby World Cup at Cape Town’s Newlands Stadium alongside several players of the current Springbok team, which included Handre Pollard and Pieter Steph du Toit.
He was also the first captain to help the Stormers to winning South Africa’s first ever United Rugby Championship trophy.
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Meanwhile, all is not lost for the double world Cup champion. Following a successful 2019 victory he and Springbok teammate Malcolm Marx launched their beer called, Bomb Squad Lager, inspired by their iconic roles on the bench at the time.
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He has also been spotted doing several appearances at sporting events on behalf of the broadcaster Supersport and might be dipping his toes into the world of punditry.
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Also see: Bok captain and coach Rassie revisit NWU for the unveiling of Siya Kolisi residence
