Deon Fourie’s round trip to the World Cup: ‘Luckily for me the stars aligned’

Springbok utility forward Deon Fourie has taken an eye-opening round trip over his storied rugby career that will see him reach the World Cup in France next month.

Fourie started his senior rugby career at the age of 20 with Western Province back in 2006, before making his Stormers debut in 2008.

ALSO READ: Deon Fourie’s journey from the French second division to (hopefully) the World Cup

He spent eight years in Cape Town before taking up an offer to join French side Lyon in 2014 where he spent five years before moving to Grenoble, spending another two years in France, before making the move back to South Africa to re-join his former side.

“When I left South Africa I tried to broaden my horizons a bit to see what else the world of rugby had to offer. I spent a good five years in Lyon and then moved onto Grenoble where we unfortunately dropped into the second division,” explained Fourie.

“That was a tough two years for me because I felt I could still perform at a higher level. So I decided to come back to South Africa and luckily the Stormers were willing to give me a shot at playing at a higher level again and the rest is history.”

Winning return

A fantastic first season back with the Stormers then followed, which ended with the team winning the inaugural United Rugby Championship.

Fourie was a key part of the Stormers’ success and that put him on the Bok radar, despite him being 35-years-old at the time.

Although his advanced age and the competition for places in the setup counted against him, Fourie received his maiden call-up to the national side in 2022.

He followed that up by becoming the oldest ever Bok debutant when he took to the field in the second Test against Wales in Bloemfontein during the incoming series.

This lit a fire in Fourie and made him realise that he could fulfil a massive dream and possibly represent the Boks at the World Cup.

“To be honest I never thought it would be possible (to play for the Boks) because of my age. I didn’t think I could make my Bok debut so late in my career. But luckily the first season back at the Stormers went really well,” admitted Fourie.

“So it was a big surprise when Jacques (Nienaber, Bok coach) called me. He told me he couldn’t guarantee me a lot of game time but that we would see what happens. At that stage I just wanted to settle in with the Boks and get as much game time as I could to prove that I could play at Test level.

“From then I knew I just had to continue putting in strong performances and hopefully I would be standing here (in the final Bok World Cup squad) and luckily for me the stars aligned.”

Hooker pressure

A lot of pressure will be on the shoulders of Fourie at the World Cup as he has been picked as the Boks’ ‘third’ hooker and should an injury happen to either Malcolm Marx or Bongi Mbonambi, he could find himself thrown back into the position.

Fourie began his career at hooker and has spent most of it in that position, but over the most recent years in his playing career he has become an incredibly good openside flanker, which is now his main position.

“I think there is always pressure in the game and especially in a specialist position like hooker. Luckily I am training there every day with the Boks and have been training in the position since the Wales series last year,” said Fourie.

“Also in my 16-year career so far I have played more at hooker than at flank. So it is a position I am more than comfortable slotting into if needed.”

Ireland loom

Going into the World Cup Fourie claimed that he was fully focused on assisting the team and had no personal goals for the tournament, but says that the Ireland pool stage match is arguably the most important game for the team during the first half of the competition.

“Just to be there (at the World Cup) is going to be nice. After I lived in France for seven years it will be nice to be back,” said Fourie.

“But we just want to take it game by game. I think like everyone is saying the game against Ireland is the big one. If we can get through that then it’s (likely) a quarterfinal against France or New Zealand.

“So it’s not going to be an easy road but to be the best you have to beat the best and we are ready for that challenge.”

Although Fourie is one of a number of players in the Bok side who has played in or is currently playing in France, he believes that the squad is fully ready for the challenge of facing the hostile crowds in the country.

“I think most the guys played in the French Test in Marseille last year. So they know what the vibe is like over there. But the good thing about this group is it has a lot of experience. A lot of the guys have played a lot of Tests, so I don’t think it’s something that will affect them very much,” said Fourie.