Jacques du Toit (rugby union)
Ockert Jacobus Jacques du Toit (born 19 November 1993 in Bloemfontein, South Africa) is a South African rugby union player for the Southern Kings in the Pro14.[1] His regular position is hooker.
Full name | Ockert Jacobus Jacques du Toit | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Date of birth | 19 November 1993 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Place of birth | Bloemfontein, South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 1.84 m (6 ft 1⁄2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 103 kg (16 st 3 lb; 227 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
School | Grey College, Bloemfontein | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
University | University of the Free State | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Career
Youth / Varsity Cup / Vodacom Cup
In 2011, Du Toit was selected to represent Free State at the premier South African high school rugby union competition, the Under-18 Craven Week tournament held in Kimberley, where he started two matches for a Free State side that was crowned unofficial champions at the tournament, beating the Golden Lions 28–17 in the main match.[2]
After high school, Du Toit joined the Free State Cheetahs Academy at the University of the Free State and was the first-choice hooker for the Free State U19 side during the 2012 Under-19 Provincial Championship, starting ten of their matches and scoring a try in their match against the SWD U19s.[3]
In 2012, Du Toit was selected in the UFS Shimlas squad for the 2012 Varsity Cup, making a single appearance in their match against Wits.[4]
He was then selected in the South African Under-20 squad for the 2013 IRB Junior World Championship in France, which attempted to retain the title they won in 2012. They started in fine fashion, beating the United States 97–0 in the opening match, with Du Toit starting the match and scoring one of South Africa's 16 tries just before half-time.[5] He also started their 31–24 win over England[6] and their 26–19 win over the hosts France in their other pool matches.[7] Du Toit retained his starting berth for their semi-final match against Wales, where South Africa suffered a 17–18 loss to be eliminated from the competition.[8] Their final match in the competition was a third-place play-off against New Zealand; Du Toit played off the bench in this match, helping South Africa finish in third spot in the tournament by winning the match 41–34.[9]
He returned to domestic action for the Free State U21s, playing in all twelve of their matches during the 2013 Under-21 Provincial Championship. He also scored a try in their match against the Leopards U21s as the Free State finished in fifth spot on the log.
He started the 2014 season again playing in the Varsity Cup for UFS Shimlas; he had a greater involvement than in 2013, making seven appearances, which included five starts and two tries in their match against NMMU Madibaz in a 34–33 victory in their final match of the regular season.[10] They finished fifth, just missing out on a semi-final berth. He was also drafted into the Free State Cheetahs squad for the 2014 Vodacom Cup. He was an unused replacement in their match against the Eastern Province Kings in Cradock,[11] but made his domestic first class debut a few weeks later, playing off the bench in a 77–10 victory over Kenyan invitational side Simba XV.[12] He started eleven times in the Free State U21s' 2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship season, helping them finish in fourth spot on the log to qualify for the semi-finals, where they lost to the table-topping Western Province U21s.[13]
Du Toit made four appearances for UFS Shimlas in latter stages of the 2015 Varsity Cup. He played in their final two matches of the round-robin phase of the competition, helping Shimlas finish in second spot on the log. He started their semi-final match against the UCT Ikey Tigers, helping them to a 21–10 victory to qualify for their first ever final.[14] He played off the bench in the final as Shimlas ran out 63–33 winners over NWU Pukke to win the competition for the first time in their history.[15] He again moved to the Free State XV Vodacom Cup squad at the conclusion of the Varsity Cup and made four appearances for them. This included his first start in a first class match in their 29–30 defeat to eventual finalists Western Province.[16]
Free State Cheetahs
He was named in the Free State Cheetahs' squad for the 2015 Currie Cup Premier Division and was named on the bench for their opening match of the competition against the Blue Bulls.[17]
References
- "SA Rugby Player Profile – Jacques du Toit". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 29 May 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – Free State 28-17 Lions". South African Rugby Union. 16 July 2011. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – SWD Eagles 21-29 Toyota Free State Cheetahs". South African Rugby Union. 21 September 2012. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – FNB Wits 7-61 FNB Shimlas". South African Rugby Union. 4 February 2013. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – South Africa 97-0 USA". South African Rugby Union. 5 June 2013. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – South Africa 31-24 England". South African Rugby Union. 9 June 2013. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – France 19-26 South Africa". South African Rugby Union. 13 June 2013. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – South Africa 17-18 Wales". South African Rugby Union. 18 June 2013. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – South Africa 41-34 New Zealand". South African Rugby Union. 23 June 2013. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – FNB UFS SHIMLAS 34-33 FNB NMMU". South African Rugby Union. 17 March 2014. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – Eastern Province Kings 3-31 Toyota Free State XV". South African Rugby Union. 29 March 2014. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – Toyota Free State XV 77-10 Tusker Simba XV". South African Rugby Union. 26 April 2014. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – Free State U19 22-29 Western Province U19". South African Rugby Union. 18 October 2014. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – FNB UFS SHIMLAS 21-10 FNB UCT". South African Rugby Union. 30 March 2015. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – FNB UFS SHIMLAS 63-33 FNB NWU-PUKKE". South African Rugby Union. 13 April 2015. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "SA Rugby Match Centre – Toyota Free State XV 29-30 DHL Western Province". South African Rugby Union. 2 May 2015. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
- "Cheetahs name team for Bulls clash". Sport24. 5 August 2015. Retrieved 5 August 2015.