Errol Tobias
| Full name | Errol Tobias | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 18 March 1950 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Caledon, South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 76.66 kg (12 st 1 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Spouse | Sandra | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Children | Errol, Sidney | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Position(s) | Fly-half, Centre | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Amateur team(s) | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Points) |
| Provincial / State sides | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Points) |
| National team(s) | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Points) |
| 1981–84 | South Africa | 6 | 22 |
Errol George Tobias (born 18 March 1950) is a former South African rugby union footballer, and the first black man to play in a test match for the South African national side. He gained six caps between 1981 and 1984 when the country was still following the policy of apartheid. Tobias's selection paved the way for other black players to be added to the national team: first Avril Williams, and later, Avril's nephew, Chester Williams. Of his 21 games for the Springboks, six were tests.
Errol Tobias was born on the farm Klipdrift, located outside Caledon in the Overberg district of the Western Cape.
In August 1978, Tobias turned out at fly-half for a multi-racial South African Country Districts XV against the American Cougars. Tobias scored two tries at the Border Rugby Union Grounds, and helped in the scoring of two more. About 5,500 spectators witnessed the 44-12 victory over the American team. The Associated Press erroneously reported this match as being the first in which a multi-racial team played against an international touring side in South Africa. In fact, the first official multi-racial team to play a foreign national side was the South African Invitation XV which included four players of colour: John Noble, Turkey Shields, Toto Tsotsobe and Morgan Cushe. Selected by Danie Craven, the team beat the French on 7 June 1975 at Newlands in Cape Town by 18 points to 3.
Tobias' international career began when he was selected for the Proteas' 1971 tour of Britain. The Proteas were affiliated with the Coloured South African Rugby Football Federation, one of four racially segregated rugby union associations in South Africa at the time.
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