Charl du Plessis

Charl du Plessis
Personal information
Full name Charl Francois du Plessis
Nickname KP
Born (1987-04-08) 8 April 1987
Cape Town, South Africa
Height 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)
Weight 113 kg (17 st 11 lb)
School(s) attended Hoërskool Monument, Krugersdorp
Club information
Playing position Prop
Current club Eastern Province Kings
Youth career
2005–08 Golden Lions
Amateur team(s)
Years Team
2008–09 UJ 12 (0)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Pts)†
2008–10 Golden Lions 7 (0)
2009 → Falcons 9 (0)
2010–12 Boland Cavaliers 31 (0)
2012–14 Eastern Province Kings 31 (0)
2013 Kings 3 (0)
2008–14 Total 81 (0)
Representative team(s)
2005 S.A. Schools 'B' ()

* Senior club appearances and points correct as of 30 March 2015.

† Appearances (Points).

Charl Francois 'KP' du Plessis (born 8 April 1987) is a former South African rugby union player that played domestically for the Golden Lions, Falcons, Boland Cavaliers and the Eastern Province Kings and also played Super Rugby with the Kings, making a total of 81 first class appearances between 2008 and 2014.[1] His regular position was prop.

Career

Youth

Du Plessis went to Hoërskool Monument in Krugersdorp, where his performances for his school earned him a selection to the Golden Lions team that participated at the Under-18 Craven Week competition held in Bloemfontein in 2005. He was also selected in a S.A. Schools 'B' team in the same year.

Golden Lions / UJ / Falcons

He joined the Golden Lions Academy after high school and played for the Golden Lions U19 during the 2006 Under-19 Provincial Championship before making the step up to the Golden Lions U21 team for the 2007 Under-21 Provincial Championship.

In 2008, he was named in university side UJ's squad for the 2008 Varsity Cup, the inaugural edition of the premier university rugby union competition in South Africa. He made two appearances for UJ in the competition before switching to the Golden Lions squad for the 2008 Vodacom Cup. He made his first class debut in their match against SWD Eagles, coming on for the final few minutes of a 20–6 victory.[2] That was his only involvement in the competition, but he did appear in two more Varsity Cup matches for UJ. In the second half of 2008, he once again played for the Golden Lions U21s in the Under-21 Provincial Championship.

In the 2009 Varsity Cup, he made a single appearance for UJ before again being involved in the Golden Lions' 2009 Vodacom Cup campaign. He started a first class match for the first time in Round Five of the competition, suffering a 21–26 defeat to eventual champions Griquas in Kimberley,[3] before making a further three starts, including the quarter-final match, where the Golden Lions were eliminated by losing 7–20 to Sharks XV in Durban.[4]

He joined the Golden Lions' near neighbours, Kempton Park-based side Falcons on loan for the duration of the 2009 Currie Cup First Division. He made his debut in the Currie Cup for the Falcons in their match against the Griffons in Kempton Park, finishing on the wrong end of a 39–27 scoreline.[5] Du Plessis featured in eight matches – starting seven of those – in a season to forget for the Falcons, as they lost all ten of their matches in the competition.

He was the undoubted first-choice loosehead prop for UJ during the 2010 Varsity Cup competition, starting all seven of their matches as UJ finished in fifth position, missing out on a play-off spot. As in the previous two years, he then played for the Golden Lions in the 2010 Vodacom Cup competition, appearing in two matches. This brought his total number of appearances for the Golden Lions in three seasons of Vodacom Cup rugby to seven, although he never appeared at Currie Cup level for them.

Boland Cavaliers

In 2010, he moved to Wellington to join the Boland Cavaliers. He made his Boland debut in the 2010 Currie Cup First Division against the team he represented in the competition in 2009, the Falcons. He came on just after half time and helped his new side to a 53–10 victory.[6] He made a total of eight appearances in the competition, starting two of those, as they reached the semi-finals of the competition, where they narrowly lost to the Eastern Province Kings, going down 25–26 in Port Elizabeth.[7]

He made seven appearances for Boland during the 2011 Vodacom Cup competition, offering the side versatility by being able to play as a loosehead or a tighthead prop. Du Plessis featured in nine of the Boland Cavaliers' ten matches during the regular season of the 2011 Currie Cup First Division, with Boland winning nine of those matches to finish top of the log. He played off the bench in the semi-final, where a 50–20 victory over Welkom-based side Griffons saw them advance to the final,[8] as well as the final itself, with Boland avening their 2010 final defeat by running out 43–12 winners over the Eastern Province Kings in Wellington to be crowned First Division champions.[9] However, the South African Rugby Union announced that the Premier Division would be reduced from eight teams to six for 2012, meaning that promotion wasn't a possibility for the Cavaliers.

Du Plessis started four matches for the Boland Cavaliers during the 2012 Vodacom Cup, narrowly missing out on qualifying for the semi-finals, finishing behind Argentine side Pampas XV on points difference only.

Eastern Province Kings

He then moved to the team he faced in two consecutive First Division finals, Port Elizabeth-based Eastern Province Kings, for the 2012 Currie Cup First Division season. He made his EP Kings debut in Round Four of the competition in a 56–5 victory over the Border Bulldogs.[10] He made a total of ten appearances, starting just one of those, a 45–24 win against the Falcons.[11] The EP Kings topped the log after the regular season and went on to win the competition by beating the Pumas 26–25 in the final.[12] This meant that Du Plessis won his second consecutive First Division title, despite missing the play-off matches through injury.

Super Rugby came to Port Elizabeth for the first time for the 2013 Super Rugby season and Du Plessis was named in the Kings wider training squad for the competition, but subsequently released to the Vodacom Cup squad.[13] He made eight appearances for the EP Kings during the 2013 Vodacom Cup, helping them reach the semi-finals for the first time in their history. He started the quarter-final, where an extraordinary comeback saw them beat the Blue Bulls 34–31 in Pretoria,[14] as well as the final, when they lost 13–39 to the Pumas in Nelspruit.[15]

Following an injury to first choice tighthead prop Kevin Buys prior the Kings' penultimate regular season Super Rugby match against the Stormers, he was included on the bench[16] and came on as a 72-minute substitute to make his Super Rugby debut.[17] He made his first Super Rugby start the following week against the Sharks in Durban[18] and also played in the second leg of their relegation play-off series against the Lions,[19] with a 23–18 victory in Johannesburg not enough to secure the Kings' Super Rugby status.

He started eight matches in the 2013 Currie Cup First Division to help the EP Kings reach their fourth consecutive final, this time losing 30–53 to the Pumas in Nelspruit.[15] However, a decision by the South African Rugby Union to increase the number of teams in the Premier Division in 2014 from six to eight, saw both teams promoted.

In 2014, he didn't feature in any matches during the 2014 Vodacom Cup, but he was selected in the starting line-up for the Eastern Province Kings side that faced Wales during a tour match during their 2014 incoming tour. He was stretchered off with a neck injury shortly before half-time as the Kings suffered a 12–34 defeat.[20] He recovered in time to play in his first ever match in the Premier Division of th Currie Cup, playing off the bench against the Natal Sharks.[21] He also made substitute appearances against Griquas[22] and their only win of the season, a 26–25 defeat of the Pumas in Port Elizabeth.[23]

Retirement

He announced his retirement from rugby in March 2015, aged 27. He suffered from persistent back problems and decided to retire following medical advice to take up a role as the manager of a game reserve in Limpopo.[24]

References

  1. ↑ "Player Profile Charl du Plessis". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 4 July 2012.
  2. ↑ "Golden Lions v SWD Eagles". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 4 July 2012.
  3. ↑ "Match Breakdown: GWK Griquas vs Golden Lions". South African Rugby Union. 27 March 2009. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  4. ↑ "Match Breakdown: Sharks XV vs Golden Lions". South African Rugby Union. 24 April 2009. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  5. ↑ "Match Breakdown: Valke vs Griffons". South African Rugby Union. 11 July 2009. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  6. ↑ "Match Breakdown: Valke vs Boland". South African Rugby Union. 24 July 2010. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  7. ↑ "Match Breakdown: Eastern Province Kings vs Boland". South African Rugby Union. 9 October 2010. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  8. ↑ "Match Breakdown: Regent Boland Cavaliers vs Tasol Solar Griffons". South African Rugby Union. 7 October 2011. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  9. ↑ "Match Breakdown: Regent Boland Cavaliers vs Eastern Province Kings". South African Rugby Union. 14 October 2011. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  10. ↑ "Match Breakdown: Eastern Province Kings vs Border Bulldogs". South African Rugby Union. 20 July 2012. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  11. ↑ "Match Breakdown: Eastern Province Kings vs Valke". South African Rugby Union. 31 August 2012. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  12. ↑ "Match Breakdown: Eastern Province Kings vs Ford Pumas". South African Rugby Union. 13 October 2012. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  13. ↑ Green, Michael (7 January 2013). "Kings het geen plek vir Tiger". Beeld (in Afrikaans). Media24. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  14. ↑ "Match Breakdown: Vodacom Blue Bulls vs Eastern Province Kings". South African Rugby Union. 4 May 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  15. 1 2 "Match Breakdown: Steval Pumas vs Eastern Province Kings". South African Rugby Union. 10 May 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  16. ↑ "Charl Du Plessis included in Southern Kings Team as Kevin Buys is withdrawn after injury". Rugby15. 4 July 2013. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
  17. ↑ "Southern Kings vs Stormers". South African Rugby Union. 7 July 2013. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  18. ↑ "Match Breakdown: Sharks vs Southern Kings". South African Rugby Union. 13 July 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  19. ↑ "Match Breakdown: MTN Lions vs Southern Kings". South African Rugby Union. 3 August 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  20. ↑ "Match Breakdown: Eastern Province Kings vs Wales". South African Rugby Union. 10 June 2014. Retrieved 10 June 2014.
  21. ↑ "Match Breakdown: Cell C Sharks vs Eastern Province Kings". South African Rugby Union. 27 September 2014. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  22. ↑ "Match Breakdown: GWK Griquas vs Eastern Province Kings". South African Rugby Union. 4 October 2014. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  23. ↑ "Match Breakdown: Eastern Province Kings vs Steval Pumas". South African Rugby Union. 10 October 2014. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  24. ↑ "O.P.-stut tree uit" (in Afrikaans). Son. 30 March 2015. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Sunday, August 30, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.