Ettienne Botha (8 April 1979 – 7 September 2005) was a South African professional rugby union player.[1]
| Date of birth | 8 April 1979 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Place of birth | Germiston, South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of death | 7 September 2005 (aged 27) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of death | Pretoria, South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 179 cm (5 ft 10 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 89 kg (196 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Hoërskool John Vorster | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Biography
editBorn in Germiston, Botha was a loose forward during his primary school years, before moving to centre in grade 10 at Hoërskool John Vorster, from where he earned SA Schools representative selection.[2]
Botha proved to be a reliable Currie Cup try-scorer, playing initially with the Falcons, then the Blue Bulls from the 2002 season. He won three Currie Cup titles with the Blue Bulls and scored a competition high 18 tries in their successful 2004 campaign, including two in the final win over the Cheetahs.[3] This earned him the team's "2004 player of the year" award and made him a serious contender for Springboks honours.[4][5]
On the morning of 7 September 2005, Botha died at the scene of a car accident near the Botha Avenue offramp on the N1 in Pretoria. He had lost control of his Audi and struck a barrier, causing the vehicle to overturn.[6][7]
References
edit- ^ "Blue Bulls cry for Ettienne". News24. 12 September 2005.
- ^ Hoffmann, Colin (4 October 2001). "Ettiene Botha comes of age". News24.
- ^ "Super 12 player dies in car crash". BBC News. 7 September 2005.
- ^ Carstens, Sonja (26 November 2006). "What killed Ettienne Botha". News24.
- ^ "Late Bulls vice-captain faced the axe". The Mail & Guardian. 7 September 2005.
- ^ Louw, Anna (8 September 2005). "Shock and grief at rugby hero's death". Independent Online.
- ^ "How rugby star Botha spent his last hours". Independent Online. 8 September 2005.