Jannie de Beer

Who is Jannie de Beer?

Jan Hendrik de Beer, nicknamed Jannie, is a South African former rugby union player. He played flyhalf for the South African national team, the Springboks. In all he represented the Springboks in 13 tests, scoring 183 points. He stands 1.82 meters tall, and weighs 87 kilograms. He was principally known as a kicking fly-half.

De Beer made his début against the British Lions in 1997, being brought in for the dropped Henry Honiball whose running game had been contained by the Lions' defence in the first two of the three tests. He failed however to establish himself properly in the Springbok side.

De Beer is most famous for his world record five drop goals in a single test match, set in the 1999 Rugby World Cup in Paris against England. The Springboks won the match 44-21, knocking England out of the tournament. However, his attempts to repeat the tactic in the semi-final versus Australia backfired, as despite several attempts he only scored one in the match, and the Australians closed him down. It proved to be his final appearance for the Springboks.

A professed Christian, de Beer credits his faith in God for his successes.