There were a few embarrassing false starts to his legendary rugby career, such as the humiliation he faced when he was caught by his mother while attempting to abandon the ritual to congratulate his victors. Or the two black eyes that were staring back at him in the mirror one day after he was ‘sorted out’ by bouncers in Pretoria.

Yet, 13 years after that bouncer-drubbing, he received this famous accolade from his teammate John Smit upon the conclusion of his international career: “I could sit here for an hour speaking about the value and contribution he has made to South Africa… He’s a huge player. In my opinion, (he’s) the greatest Springbok that’s ever been.”

The man in question is Victor Matfield, the most capped Springbok rugby player in history.

Heyneke Meyer, former coach of the Blue Bulls and former assistant coach of the Springboks, is steadfast in his belief that Matfield is the finest player he has ever coached.

It is a remarkable compliment coming from a mentor who coached Joost van der Westhuizen, Fourie du Preez, Bakkies Botha and Mark Andrews, among others.

Meyer applauds Matfield as a leader, saying that he set new benchmarks and standards for excellence and expected his teammates to
meet these.

Frans Ludeke, current coach of the Bulls, applauded the tactical genius of his captain in a preview to Matfield’s autobiography, Victor: My Journey. He wrote that Matfield was rare among rugby players due to his ability to pinpoint, analyse and take advantage of the weak links in his opponents’ line-outs.

“He spent hours studying video footage of teams to learn their patterns and tactics in order to find small but often significant clues that would give his team the advantage,” added Ludeke.

“Victor’s leadership positively influenced the behaviour of his teammates, and always elicited their best performances. And he had a burning ambition for success. His biggest legacy at the Bulls union is the way in which he set new standards for many facets of our game.

“But what impressed me most about Victor was his easy and consistent ability to be a complete person, player and captain,” he wrote.

Matfield’s parents, Fai and Hettie, were not impressed with him at under-8 level when, as captain of Pietersburg North Primary, he advised his teammates – after a drubbing at the hands of Pietersburg East Primary – to run off without shaking the hands of the winners.

They made a beeline for the pavilion after the loss, but the young Victor was not fast enough. His mother chased him down like a fleet-footed winger, grabbed his right ear and gave him a lecture that helped to lay the foundations of his future rugby career.

She said: “Victor, you turn back this instant, go and find each player on that team, shake their hand and tell them they played well. The same goes for their coach. And then you thank the referee for the game. If you don’t go back right now, I’ll see to it that you never play rugby again!”

Matfield, his tail firmly between his legs, had to turn back to congratulate the Pietersburg East Primary team.

As soon as he arrived home, his father told him to go to the bathroom. He knew what that meant...

During his early career in the Bulls team, Matfield was dropped from the Vodacom
Cup team.

He went out with an old mate, Riaan Olckers, for a few beers at a favourite watering hole in Hatfield, but was confronted by a bouncer when he wanted to take his beers into the venue. Matfield defied the bouncer.

Next thing, he woke up in his bed and, looking into the mirror, saw two black eyes. So had his friend Riaan.

It turned out that Matfield and Olckers had been ‘worked over’ by the bouncers; and when they had sought reinforcements in the form of two massive players, Wium Basson and Jaco Barnard, they were told to go home, Matfield revealed in his autobiography.

Most casual observers remember that he represented the Springbok under-21 team in 1997 under the captaincy of Bob Skinstad, that he left his beloved Loftus Versfeld for Griquas in 1999, and represented the Cats in the Super 12 season. And that he returned to the Bulls fray in 2000 and was in the Springbok frame ever since he debuted against Italy on 30 June 2001.

They would further recall that Matfield is the most capped Springbok in history (110 tests) and arguably one of the most gifted line-out practitioners in the history of the oval ball game.

They would think that he was born with these natural gifts and that the Springbok jersey, the fame and the glory – three Super 14 trophies, a Webb Ellis Trophy and three Currie Cups – came quite easily.

But interviewing the bearded legend gives the distinct impression that he had to overcome a few setbacks to win the hearts and minds of several coaches, among them Meyer and Jake White.

Matfield’s first confrontation with White, former Springbok coach, was in a hotel in Sandton. White told him that if he wanted to play for the Springboks, he had to change his attitude and get a haircut. “Have you ever seen an international forward with long hair?” he had asked.

When he was in Australasia for the 2004 Tri-Nations campaign, White hinted at the fact that Matfield would not become a Springbok captain if he did not have his hair cut, and change his ‘show pony’ ways.

The coach sent him back to South Africa, seemingly because of a knee injury that was not responding to training fast enough. But the knee was not the main reason, as Matfield turned out for the Bulls that weekend.

When the Boks returned to South Africa, Meyer set up an appointment between himself, Matfield and White.

White repeated his remarks about Matfield’s hair and attitude. But Meyer defended Matfield, saying that his work ethic was above reproach, and that he put in more effort than any other player he knew.

But then he turned to Matfield and told him: “Jake’s view about you is not completely wrong, Victor. You drive the newest and smartest model car, you dress differently from the other guys in the team, and you like being in the spotlight.”

The criticism hit home, and Matfield had a look in the mirror.

Fortunately, White selected him for the home series against New Zealand and Australia, and Matfield repaid his faith in him with masterful performances, spearheading the Boks to victory in both games.

“That meeting (with Meyer and White) changed me; it taught me to adapt to the situation rather than wilfully following my own head,” Matfield said.

His life motto is: “Champions train while others rest.”

Matfield told Leadership, “My advice to youngsters who have Springbok aspirations is to stay humble and to work hard while others rest. I have experienced many players during my lifetime who were more talented than I was, but I worked harder than anybody else.

“You simply have to be willing to make sacrifices if you want to play to the best of your ability. Besides having ball sense and being fit, the other key ingredient in any serious rugby players’ recipe book has to be dedication.”

Whenever he went out for a couple of beers, he would do a few additional kilometres in the gymnasium the next day, he added.

Matfield captained the Springboks several times – even during the Rugby World Cup tournament of 2011, which was his grand finale as an international player.

Asked what makes an international leader, he said a leader must remain humble. “You cannot achieve anything on your own. Surround yourself with good leaders. Know your own limitations, and live your life according to sound business principles.

“A leader is simply a person. People often think the captain doesn’t have any problems. Everybody has problems, including me. And sometimes it is necessary for other people to see that I am comfortable with my flaws because I know there are things at which I’m better. I accept who I am.”

Matfield does not subscribe to the theory that public enemy number one of the South African rugby nation, Bryce Lawrence, deliberately and purposefully knocked the Springboks out of the Rugby World Cup with a sub-standard performance in the quarterfinal
against Australia.

He is adamant that it was simply a poor refereeing performance by Lawrence, rather than anything sinister by the New Zealander.

“I always look at myself first,” Matfield told www.rugby365.com. “I was captain (on the field) for the last 30 minutes (after John Smit was replaced by Bismarck du Plessis) and I feel there were other calls I could have made. (In the last 30 minutes) I could have told Fourie du Preez and Morné Steyn to look for a drop goal.”

He was one of South Africa’s heroes during the 2007 Rugby World Cup and won the coveted Man of the Match award for his mastery in the line-outs, and his athleticism and work rate in general play in the final against the
England team.

The Boks won 15-6, and sent their millions of fans into exhilaration when Smit proudly displayed the Webb Ellis Cup.

Probed about coaches to take over the Springbok job, Matfield is adamant that it should be a South African.

One of the possible candidates, according to him, is Meyer. “He installed everything (I know) and the way I look at rugby. It is difficult to compare other coaches to him because Heyneke got me as a youngster and made me.”

In fact, Matfield’s outspoken view that Meyer was the best coach under whom he ever played, uttered within earshot of White, had the coach fuming. He reached out to Matfield and grabbed him by the collar at a meeting in Fancourt. “How could you say such a thing just weeks after the Boks had won the World Cup under him?” a furious White asked him.

Ricky Roberts, Ernie Els’ caddy, had to calm White down.

Although Matfield was a World Cup-winning player, he maintained to Leadership that his greatest rugby moment ever was the semifinal and the final of the Super 14 competition against the Stormers in Orlando. The fact that they were instrumental in inspiring social cohesion and nation building was a heartwarming moment.

“Our foray into Soweto had proved to me how people of different cultures can come together and share the same joy. Again, it was sport – and in this case, rugby – that had made it possible,” he said.

“I will remember the day before the semifinal (against the Crusaders in 2010 in Soweto) – when we were driving through the streets of Soweto, and observed white and black people drinking beer and braaiing together – longer than the day we lifted the trophy.”

Matfield is a director of a business consultancy, WAD Capital, and will fulfil a role as anchorman of the SuperSport commentary team in 2012.

But there is a much bigger dream.

He says Meyer taught him that if you have a passion and you want to fulfil it, you must write it down. You must also jot down the steps you will take to achieve that dream. “I did exactly that after my first year as captain of the Blue Bulls,” revealed Matfield. “Then, after you’ve written down your dream and the steps you’re going to take to achieve it, you have to focus on what needs to be done and put in the hard yards. Remember, champions train when the others rest.

“That’s not to say you won’t have any setbacks. But the burning ambition to reach your goal must carry you through the tough times.”

He achieved his World Cup dream in 2007, but the Boks with Matfield in the heart of the engine room failed to do so in New Zealand in 2011.

But now he has a new dream: to arrive at the airport one day as the coach of the Springboks with his captain and his teammates, bringing the Webb Ellis Cup back to South Africa.

Fanie Heyns