Love him or hate him, the late, great James Small made a massive impact on the Springboks side to win the Rugby World Cup in 1995.
24 June 2025 marks the 30th anniversary of the day South Africa lifted the Webb Ellis Cup for the first time by defeating New Zealand’s All Blacks.
Nostalgic 30th anniversary for Springboks supporters
How on earth has it been 30 years? Older Springbok supporters might remember it as if it were yesterday, while Gen Z fans can only longingly look back on footage of Joel Stransky’s unforgettable drop-goal that sealed a 15-12 win.
As skipper Francois Pienaar said while proudly clutching the trophy in front of an adoring Ellis Park crowd, “We didn’t have 60,000 South Africans, we had 43 million South Africans.”
Bigger than sport.#OnThisDay #RWC1995 pic.twitter.com/vGVI7U3Udr
— Rugby World Cup (@rugbyworldcup) June 24, 2019
James Small, gone but never forgotten
Winger James Small debuted for the Boks against New Zealand in 1992. His final tally came to 60 caps in with 27 tries to his name. Small’s legacy, however, was his resolute defensive skills, infamously on display while marking the fearsome force of Jonah Lomu in the 1995 World Cup final in Joburg. This display created something of a blueprint for future Springbok teams.
Fallen heroes
Small died from a heart attack in 2019 at the age of 50. Joost van der Westhuizen, Chester Williams, Ruben Kruger and Hannes Strydom, all members of the 1995 Rugby World Cup winning squad, are no longer with us.
