Hall of Fame and top 20 schools 2026

Twelve former South African International players have been inducted into either the International Rugby Hall of Fame or the World Rugby Hall of Fame.

In addition to players, the World Rugby Hall of Fame has also inducted the following people:

Kitch Christie, coach of the 1995 Rugby World Cup-winning team.

Jake White, coach of the 2007 Rugby World Cup-winning team.

2006 EnglandWilliam Webb Ellis[1]
 EnglandRugby School[2]
2007 South AfricaDanie Craven[3]
 FrancePierre de Coubertin[4]
 AustraliaJohn Eales[5]
 WalesGareth Edwards[6]
 New ZealandWilson Whineray[7]
2008 New Zealand1888–89 New Zealand Native football team[8]
 ScotlandNed Haig[9]
 IrelandJack Kyle[10]
 ScotlandMelrose Rugby Football Club[11]
 ArgentinaHugo Porta[12]
 FrancePhilippe Sella[13]
 New ZealandJoseph Astbury Warbrick[14]
2009 South Africa and
 Argentina
Barry Heatlie[15]
 ScotlandBill Maclagan[16]
 IrelandWillie John McBride[17]
 ScotlandIan McGeechan[18]
 IrelandSyd Millar[19]
 WalesCliff Morgan[20]
 IrelandTony O’Reilly[21]
 South AfricaBennie Osler[22]
 South AfricaFrik du Preez[23]
2011 United KingdomBarbarian Football Club[24]
 FranceSerge Blanco[25]
 FranceAndré Boniface[26]
 WalesCardiff Rugby Football Club[27]
 EnglandWilliam Percy Carpmael[28]
 New ZealandDave Gallaher[29]
 IrelandMike Gibson[30]
 WalesFrank Hancock[31]
 FranceLucien Mias[32]
 FranceJean Prat[33]
 EnglandAlan Rotherham[34]
 EnglandHarry Vassall[35]
 South AfricaKitch Christie[36]
 AustraliaBob Dwyer[37]
 AustraliaNick Farr-Jones[38]
 EnglandMartin Johnson[39]
 EnglandJohn Kendall-Carpenter[40]
 New ZealandDavid Kirk[41]
 SamoaBrian Lima[42]
 New ZealandDick Littlejohn[43]
 New ZealandBrian Lochore[44]
 New ZealandJonah Lomu[45]
 AustraliaRod Macqueen[46]
 South AfricaFrançois Pienaar[47]
 ArgentinaAgustín Pichot[48]
 CanadaGareth Rees[49]
 AustraliaNicholas Shehadie[50]
 South AfricaJohn Smit[51]
 AustraliaIR Vanderfield[52]
 South AfricaJake White[53]
 EnglandClive Woodward[54]
2012 United States1920 and 1924 United States Olympic rugby team[55]
 Romania1924 Romania Olympic rugby team[56]
 ChileDonald Campbell[57]
 ChileIan Campbell[58]
 JapanYoshihiro Sakata[59]
 New ZealandGordon Tietjens[60]
 ZimbabweKennedy Tsimba[61]
 ZimbabweRichard Tsimba[62]
2013 ScotlandDavid Bedell-Sivright[63]
 AustraliaDavid Campese[64]
 AustraliaKen Catchpole[65]
 IrelandRonnie Dawson[66]
 AustraliaMark Ella[67]
 AustraliaGeorge Gregan[68]
 EnglandAlfred St. George Hamersley[69]
 ScotlandGavin Hastings[70]
 Soviet UnionVladimir Ilyushin[71]
 AustraliaThomas Lawton, Snr[72]
 WalesJack Matthews[73]
 United KingdomRobert Seddon[74]
 United Kingdom1888 British Lions[75]
 FijiWaisale Serevi[76]
 AustraliaJohn Thornett[77]
 WalesBleddyn Williams[78]
2014 New ZealandFred Allen[79]
 New ZealandDon Clarke[80]
 New ZealandGrant Fox[81]
 New ZealandSean Fitzpatrick[82]
 New ZealandMichael Jones[83]
 New ZealandIan Kirkpatrick[84]
 New ZealandJohn Kirwan[85]
 New ZealandTerry McLean[86]
 New ZealandColin Meads[87]
 New ZealandGraham Mourie[88]
 New ZealandGeorge Nēpia[89]
 FranceNathalie Amiel[n 1][90]
 EnglandGillian Burns[n 1][91]
 United StatesPatty Jervey[n 1][92]
 EnglandCarol Isherwood[n 1][93]
 New ZealandAnna Richards[n 1][94]
 New ZealandFarah Palmer[n 1][95]
 WalesKeith Rowlands[96]
 ScotlandJames Greenwood[97]
 WalesJ. P. R. Williams[98]
 AustraliaMichael Lynagh[99]
 FranceJo Maso[100]
 IrelandKeith Wood[101]
 WalesIeuan Evans[102]
 EnglandJason Leonard[103]
 EnglandJonny Wilkinson[104]
 EnglandBill Beaumont[105]
2015 AustraliaTim Horan[106]
 AustraliaTom Richards[107]
 EnglandEdgar Mobbs[108]
 EnglandRonald Poulton-Palmer[109]
 EnglandWavell Wakefield[110]
 FranceJean-Pierre Rives[111]
 FranceMarcel Communeau[112]
 IrelandBasil Maclear[113]
 IrelandFergus Slattery[114]
 IrelandTom Kiernan[115]
 ScotlandAndy Irvine[116]
 ScotlandBill McLaren[117]
 ScotlandGordon Brown[118]
 South AfricaDanie Gerber[119]
 South AfricaHennie Muller[120]
 South AfricaJoost van der Westhuizen[121]
 South AfricaMorne du Plessis[122]
 South AfricaNaas Botha[123]
 South AfricaNelson Mandela[124]
 WalesBarry John[125]
 WalesCarwyn James[126]
 WalesGerald Davies[127]
 WalesGwyn Nicholls[128]
 WalesMervyn Davies[129]
 WalesPhil Bennett[130]
 WalesJohnny Williams[131]
2016 Australia and
 United States
Daniel Carroll[132]
 CanadaHeather Moyse[n 1][133]
 EnglandMargaret Alphonsi[n 1][134]
 EnglandLawrence Dallaglio[135]
 EnglandJeremy Guscott[136]
 IrelandBrian O’Driscoll[137]
 JapanDaisuke Ohata[138]
 ScotlandG.P.S. Macpherson[139]
 WalesJohn Dawes[140]
 WalesArthur Gould[141]
 WalesShane Williams[142]
2017133 ArgentinaFelipe Contepomi[143]
134 CanadaAl Charron[144]
135 FranceFabien Pelous[145]
136 EnglandRob Andrew[146]
137 United StatesPhaidra Knight[n 1][147]
2018138 AustraliaStephen Larkham[148]
139 IrelandRonan O’Gara[149]
140 FrancePierre Villepreux[150]
141 New ZealandBryan Williams[151]
142 WalesLiza Burgess[n 1][152]
2019143 New ZealandRichie McCaw[153]
144 JapanShiggy Konno[154]
145 South AfricaOs du Randt[155]
146 SamoaPeter Fatialofa[156]
147 New ZealandGraham Henry[157]
148 UruguayDiego Ormaechea[158]
2021149 FijiOsea Kolinisau[159]
150 KenyaHumphrey Kayange[160]
151 New ZealandHuriana Manuel[n 1][161]
152 AustraliaCheryl McAfee[n 1][162]
153 EnglandWill Carling[163]
154 ScotlandJim Telfer[164]
2022155 EnglandDeborah Griffin[n 1][165]
156 EnglandSue Dorrington[n 1][166]
157 EnglandAlice Cooper[n 1][167]
158 EnglandMary Forsyth[n 1][168]
159 United StatesKathy Flores[n 1][169]
160 New ZealandFiao’o Fa’amausili[n 1][170]
2023161 EnglandThe Varsity Matches[171]
162 New ZealandDan Carter[172]
163 FranceThierry Dusautoir[173]
164 AustraliaGeorge Smith[174]
165 ArgentinaJuan Martín Hernández[175]
166 South AfricaBryan Habana[176]
2024167 AustraliaEmilee Cherry[177]
168 New ZealandDJ Forbes[178]
169 ItalySergio Parisse[179]
170 ScotlandDonna Kennedy[180]
171 New ZealandChris Laidlaw[181]

See also

Rankings of the Top 10 schools in South Africa 2026


Rank SchoolNotable Movement/Status
1StellenbergFirmly at No. 1 after a historic run.
2Paarl GimnasiumHolding steady at No. 2; remains a dominant force.
3Paul Roos GymnasiumUnchanged at No. 3.
4Grey CollegeUnchanged at No. 4; uncharacteristically lost two in a row.
5GarsfonteinUnchanged at No. 5 after beating Stellenberg and Paarl Boys.
6Maritzburg CollegeMajor Climber (Up 7 places) after a strong defensive run.
7Hilton CollegeRegional powerhouse in KZN.
8OuteniquaMajor Climber (Up 4 places).
9Paarl Boys HighSlipped 1 spot; still elite.
10MichaelhouseSlipped 1 spot.
11DHSSlipped 5 spots.
12WestvilleSlipped 5 spots; suffered most significant drop.
13NorthwoodUp 2 spots.
14AffiesSlipped 3 spots; currently out of the Top 10.
15OakdaleUp 1 spot.
16RondeboschSlipped 2 spots.
17MonumentKnown as the “Wesrand” pride.
18HelpmekaarConsistent presence in the Top 20.
19WaterkloofNew Entry into the Top 20.
20MenloparkHolding onto the final Top 20 spot.

📌 Notes on the Data

  • Paul Roos Gymnasium consistently ranks first across sources with about 54 Springboks produced historically.
  • Grey College is often highlighted as the most influential in the modern era (especially since 1992) but also ranks second overall.
  • Numbers can vary slightly among lists depending on cut-off dates and whether uncapped/squad-only players are included, but the order of the top producers remains consistent among major compilations.
  • Key Trends & Teams to Watch
  • Western Cape Dominance: The region continues to dominate, with Stellenberg, Paarl Gim, Paul Roos, and Paarl Boys High appearing at the top of the rankings.
  • Rise of New Powerhouses: Stellenberg has established itself as a top-tier threat, defying traditional rankings by defeating established “Big 5” sides early in the 2026 season.
  • KZN Contenders: Durban High School (DHS), Maritzburg College, and Hilton are having strong seasons in 2026.
  • Northern Schools: Garsfontein and Affies remain competitive contenders from Pretoria. 
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