John Gainsford (1938 – 2015) laid to rest
While the world last week mourned the death All Blacks icon Jonah Lomu, the death of John Gainsford, one of the greatest Springboks of all time, passed almost unnoticed.
One of the best centres that South Africa has ever produced, was buried earlier this week, after he died last week following a long battle with cancer.
John Gainsford was 77.
Gainsford established himself as one of the greatest centres of his generation due to his powerful bursts and rock-solid defence. He earned 33 Test caps and scored eight tries during his Springbok career between 1960 and 1967, playing in 71 Springbok matches in total (including tour matches). He remained the most capped Springbok centre until 2001 when his record was finally overtaken by Japie Mulder.
Gainsford was a world-renowned player, who emerged from the Villagers Rugby Club in Cape Town. He made his Springbok debut on 30 April 1960 against Scotland at the young age of 21 and played his last Test at the age of 28.
During his illustrious career he surpassed the record of 28 Tests by Johan Claassen to become the most capped Springbok.
Gainsford’s was a meteoric talent. He was selected for Villagers’ first team at the tender age of 17 and two years later, was selected to represent Western Province’s senior team. The following season he represented the Junior Springbok team in Argentina.
Later that year, he made his Springbok debut in a Test series against New Zealand and soon after he proved to be the star player in the Springboks’ five-Test tour of Europe.
One of his most notable achievements was the two tries he scored during the 1962 British Lions tour, which contributed to the Springboks’ series victory. In later life, he became a member of the Western Province Rugby Union executive.
Gainsford is survived by his wife Shona, children Murray, Lindsay, Kirk and Shona-Leigh and 11 grandchildren.
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