Abrie Griesel

Abrie Griesel
Personal information
Full nameAbraham Jacobus Griesel
Born15 January 1992
Bloemfontein, South Africa
Height1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Weight85 kg (13 st 5 lb)
School(s) attendedGrey College, Bloemfontein
Club information
Playing positionScrum-half
Current clubGriquas
Youth career
2005–10Free State Cheetahs
2011–13Blue Bulls
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Pts)
2014Free State Cheetahs4(0)
2014–Griquas4(5)
Representative team(s)
2012S.A. Under-203(0)
* Senior club appearances and points correct as of 11 October 2014.

† Appearances (Points).

‡ Representative team caps and points correct as of 7 August 2014.

Abraham Jacobus Griesel (born 15 January 1992 in Bloemfontein, South Africa) is a South African rugby union player, currently playing with Griquas.[1] His regular position is scrum-half.

Career

Youth

At school level, he was included in the Free State Under-13 team that played at the 2005 Under-13 Craven Week competition and in their Under-18 side that played at the Academy Week tournament in 2010.

He made the move to Pretoria in 2011 to join the Blue Bulls. He made seven starts and two appearances off the bench for the Blue Bulls U19 during the 2011 Under-19 Provincial Championship and two appearances for the Blue Bulls U21 side in 2012.

2012 IRB Junior World Championship

In 2012, Griesel was a member of the South Africa national under-20 rugby union team that participated at the 2012 IRB Junior World Championship held in South Africa. He started their first match of the competition, a 23–19 defeat to Ireland.[2] He came on as a late substitute in their next match against Italy[3] and didn't make an appearance in their final pool match against England, where South Africa got a 28–15 victory to ensure their qualifications for the semi-finals.[4] He played off the bench in their semi-final clash with Argentina,[5] but remained an unused substitute for the final, where the hosts triumphed 22–16 over New Zealand to win the competition for the first time.[6]

Free State Cheetahs

His introduction to first class provincial rugby came during the 2014 Vodacom Cup competition, where the played for the Free State XV after moving back to Bloemfontein. He made his debut by coming on as a second-half substitute against the SWD Eagles in a 52–47 win.[7] He made a further three substitute appearances in the Cheetahs' next three matches.

Griquas

He moved to Kimberley shortly after to link up with a Griquas side trying to qualify for the 2014 Currie Cup Premier Division. Although he was named in their squad for the 2014 Currie Cup qualification series, he failed to make an appearance, but was retained for their Premier League campaign. He was included on the bench for their season-opener against the Natal Sharks.[8]

References

  1. "SARU Player Profile Abrie Griesel". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
  2. "Match Breakdown: South Africa vs Ireland". South African Rugby Union. 4 June 2012. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
  3. "Match Breakdown: South Africa vs Italy". South African Rugby Union. 8 June 2012. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
  4. "Match Breakdown: South Africa vs England". South African Rugby Union. 12 June 2012. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
  5. "Match Breakdown: Argentina vs South Africa". South African Rugby Union. 17 June 2012. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
  6. "Match Breakdown: New Zealand vs South Africa". South African Rugby Union. 22 June 2012. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
  7. "Match Breakdown: Toyota Free State XV vs SWD Eagles". South African Rugby Union. 8 March 2014. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
  8. "Griquas set sights high". Sport24. 6 August 2014. Retrieved 7 August 2014.