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PARIS - Seven years after his international career appeared over, South Africa prop Os Du Randt is on the verge of joining one of rugby's most exclusive groups.
Du Randt is already revered in South Africa for playing in the Springboks team that won the 1995 World Cup, but his status will reach dizzying new heights should he win the Webb Ellis Cup for a second time next weekend.
The only players to have played in two World Cup winning teams are John Eales, Tim Horan and Jason Little, who won with Australia in 1991 and again eight years later in 1999.
It has been 12 years since Du Randt won the World Cup but he says the longer wait would only make the victory taste sweeter.
"It will definitely be something nice to look back over the years and say you started with a win in the World Cup and ended with a win in the World Cup," he told reporters before Sunday's semi-final against Argentina.
"I will look back and feel that I've done my bit for South Africa.
"I'm very, very proud to achieve that and it is something that I would not want to do any different if I had my time over again."
Du Randt, who is known in South Africa as "the Ox", was just 22 when the Springboks were crowned world champions in 1995, and will retire after this World Cup.
He is the only member of the 1995 team still playing and one of a handful of players from any country whose careers started in the amateur era.
A giant of a man standing 190 centimetres tall and weighing 125 kilograms, Du Randt initially retired seven years ago because of chronic knee problems, returning to his family farm in the belief that his playing days were over.
As a World Cup winner, he had already achieved his every ambition so had no regrets about hanging up his boots until his former team mate turned coach Rassie Erasmus persuaded him to make a comeback for Free State in the domestic Currie Cup.
Du Randt agreed to have another go and a year later he was back with the Springboks - 10 years after he made his international debut. "Any time you get to play in a World Cup final or in a World Cup for the Springboks is something special," he said.
"If we go through I will play my 80th test in the final. I retired on 39 tests so to go on to play another 41 tests is something that I never thought would happen.
"If you look at things like that it is definitely something that I will treasure and remember."
To get to the final, South Africa first have to beat Argentina.
The Pumas have always held special significance for Du Randt because he made his test debut against them in 1994 when their current coach Marcelo Loffreda was still a player.
"It is going to be a tough game for us but I'm looking forward to it, looking forward to the physical side to it and hopefully we can pull it through," he said.
"They are good scrumming wise, good mauling wise so as forwards it will be a good benchmark to see where we are at the moment in competing wise against a team like that."
- REUTERS
