Jan Prinsloo - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Johannes "Jan" Albertus Prinsloo was a South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

n rugby union

Rugby union

Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...

and professional rugby league

Rugby league

Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...

footballer of the 1950s and '60s who at representative level played rugby union (RU) for South Africa

South Africa national rugby union team

The South African national rugby union team are 2009 British and Irish Lions Series winners. They are currently ranked as the fourth best team in the IRB World Rankings and were named 2008 World Team of the Year at the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards.Although South Africa was instrumental...

, and at provincial level for Western Province

Western Province (rugby team)

DHL Western Province is a South African rugby union team that participates in the annual Currie Cup tournament. The team has won the Currie Cup on 32 occasions and has the most supporters of any Currie Cup team...

, playing at Wing, i.e. number 11 or 14, and at representative level played rugby league (RL) for Rugby League XIII, and at club level for St. Helens, and Wakefield Trinity

Wakefield Trinity Wildcats

Wakefield Trinity Wildcats are a professional rugby league club that plays in the European Super League and is based in Wakefield. They achieved promotion in 1999 and have remained in the League since. They are known to their fans as Wakey, Trinity, Wildcats, or historically The Dreadnoughts...

, playing at , i.e. number 2 or 5.

International honours

Jan Prinsloo won caps for South Africa (RU) while at Western Province in 1958 against France (2 matches), and represented Rugby League XIII (RL) while at ?.

Career at St. Helens

Jan Prinsloo scored his first try

Try

A try is the major way of scoring points in rugby league and rugby union football. A try is scored by grounding the ball in the opposition's in-goal area...

for St. Helens as part of a two-try début against Rochdale Hornets

Rochdale Hornets

Rochdale Hornets RLFC is an English professional rugby league club from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England. They currently play in Championship One...

on the 8th of November, 1958. In the 1958/59 season Jan Prinsloo scored hat-trick

Hat-trick

A hat-trick or hat trick in sport is the achievement of a positive feat three times during a game, or other achievements based on threes. The term was first used in 1858 in cricket to describe HH Stephenson's feat of taking three wickets in three balls. A collection was held for Stephenson, and he...

s against Salford

Salford City Reds

Salford City Reds are an English rugby league club based in Salford, Greater Manchester. Formed in 1873, they currently play in the Super League. They have won six Rugby Football League Championships and one Challenge Cup...

and Blackpool Borough

Blackpool Borough

Blackpool Borough was a rugby league club based in Blackpool, Lancashire.The team wore tangerine, black and white jerseys.-Blackpool Borough:...

for a season total of 27-tries from 31 games. Jan Prinsloo played a vital part in finishing dazzling moves for many a St. Helens victory including the sensational 1959 Championship Final win by 44 points to 22 over a great Hunslet

Hunslet Hawks

Hunslet Hawks is a professional rugby league club based in Hunslet, West Yorkshire, England. The club, sometimes known as 'the Parksiders' after their former stadium, are currently champions of Championship One.-History:-Early years:...

side where Jan Prinsloo exhibited a fabulous touchline dash rounded off with his trademark 'swallow dive' over the tryline. In the 1959/60 season Jan scored 4-tries against Liverpool City

Liverpool City (rugby league)

Liverpool City was a semi-professional rugby league club from the city of Liverpool in England.-The first Liverpool City - 1906-1907:A professional club first emerged in Liverpool, called Liverpool City in 1906, playing at the Stanley Athletics Ground. They hold an unwanted record in the...

and a hat-trick of tries against Hull, finishing the season with 29-tries from 38 matches. The following year brought more success with a hat-trick of tries against Workington Town

Workington Town

Workington Town is a professional rugby league club playing in Workington in West Cumbria. They play in the Championship 1. Their stadium is called Derwent Park, which they share with Workington Comets, a speedway team....

. In 1960 Jan Prinsloo also won a Lancashire Cup

Rugby league county cups

Historically, British rugby league clubs competed for the Lancashire Cup and the Yorkshire Cup, known collectively as the county cups. The leading rugby clubs in Yorkshire had played in a cup competition for several years prior to the schism of 1895...

winners medal when the St. Helens defeated Swinton

Swinton Lions

Swinton Lions is an English professional rugby league club from Swinton, Greater Manchester. The club has won the Championship six times and three Challenge Cups. They currently play in the Championship.-Early years:...

by 15 points to 9 in front of a crowd of over 31,000 at Central Park

Central Park (Wigan)

Central Park was a rugby league stadium in Wigan, England. It was the home of Wigan RLFC before the club moved to the JJB Stadium in 1999. Its final capacity was 18,000.-History:...

. His final match for St. Helens was against Warrington

Warrington Wolves

Warrington Wolves are a professional rugby league football club based in Warrington, England that competes in Super League. They play at the Halliwell Jones Stadium, having moved there from Wilderspool in 2003....

on the 7th of January, 1961. The transferring of both Jan Prinsloo to Wakefield Trinity

Wakefield Trinity Wildcats

and Frank Carlton

Frank Carlton

Frank "Carlo" Carlton was an English professional rugby league footballer of the 1950s and '60s who at representative level played for Great Britain, and England, and at club level for St. Helens, and Wigan, playing at , i.e...

to Wigan

Wigan Warriors

Wigan Warriors is an English rugby league club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester. The club's first team squad competes in the engage Super League and the team are the current Challenge Cup holders as of the 27th August 2011....

paved the way for a £11,000 World Record transfer to bring Mick Sullivan

Mick Sullivan

Michael "Mick" Sullivan is an English former professional Rugby League World Cup winning footballer of the 1950s and 60s. He holds the record for the most appearances for the Great Britain Lions with 46.Sullivan signed with Huddersfield in 1952 as an 18 year-old right winger...

to Knowsley Road

Knowsley Road

Knowsley Road was a stadium located in Eccleston, St Helens, Merseyside. It was the home of St Helens RLFC from 1890 until its closure in 2010. St Helens Town FC played their home fixtures at Knowsley Road from 2002 until 2010. For a period, the venue also hosted Liverpool FC Reserves...

. Jan Prinsloo had the daunting task of wearing the St. Helens number five jersey at the same time as Tom van Vollenhoven

Tom van Vollenhoven

Tom van Vollenhoven is a South African former rugby union and rugby league footballer of the 1950s and 60s....

was setting the whole game on fire on the other wing. His record and strike-rate demonstrates what a fine finisher Jan Prinsloo was in rugby league.

External links

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