Rudolf August Wilkens Straeuli (born 20 August 1963 in Pretoria, South Africa) is a former South African rugby union player and coach and currently the CEO of the Lions Rugby Company. He played in the positions of flanker and Number 8, making ten test appearances for South Africa in 1994 and 1995.^[1] He was the coach of the Springboks rugby team in 2002 and 2003. He also played for the Golden Lions provincial team in the Currie Cup and Super 12 competitions.

Playing career

Straeuli played his first in provincial rugby in 1990 for Northern Transvaal and from 1993 he played for Transvaal. During 1993 he also toured with the South African Barbarians to the United Kingdom.^[2]

Straeuli made his debut for South Africa on 9 July 1994 against the All Blacks, in which he also scored a try. In all he played 10 tests, including representing South Africa in the 1995 Rugby World Cup, before his career ended on 18 November 1995 against England at Twickenham Stadium.

In 1997 he joined the Bedford Blues rugby club in England.^[3]

Test history

  World Cup Final

No.	Opposition	Result (SA 1st)	Position	Tries	Date	Venue
1.	New Zealand	14–22	Flank	1	9 Jul 1994	Carisbrook, Dunedin
2.	Argentina	42–22	Flank		8 Oct 1994	Boet Erasmus Stadium, Port Elizabeth
3.	Argentina	46–26	Flank	1	15 Oct 1994	Ellis Park, Johannesburg
4.	Scotland	34–10	Number 8	1	19 Nov 1994	Murrayfield, Edinburgh
5.	Wales	20–12	Number 8	1	26 Nov 1994	Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff
6.	Samoa	60–8	Number 8		13 Apr 1995	Ellis Park, Johannesburg
7.	Australia	27–18	Number 8		25 May 1995	Newlands, Cape Town
8.	Samoa	42–14	Number 8		10 Jun 1995	Ellis Park, Johannesburg
9.	New Zealand	15–12	Replacement		24 Jun 1995	Ellis Park, Johannesburg
10.	England	24–14	Replacement		18 Nov 1995	Twickenham, London

Coaching career

In 1998 he transitioned from player to coach at Bedford.^[3]

Coastal Sharks

Staeuli coached the Coastal Sharks for the 2001 and 2002 seasons in the Super 12 tournament. In his first season in charge, he led the team to a runner up finish, having finished in last place the season before.^[4]

Springboks

In 2002, Straeuli took over as the head coach of the Springboks. He won his first four games, with two victories over Wales, a 20-point victory over Argentina and a convincing 60–18 defeat of Samoa. However, the team subsequently suffered several defeats against the bigger nations, losing 30–10 to France, 21–6 to Scotland, 53–3 to England and 52–16 to New Zealand during his reign.

He coached the Springboks during the 2003 Rugby World Cup, a campaign that saw South Africa failing to reach the semi-finals of a World Cup for the first time. Straeuli was forced to resign shortly after the tournament when details of his infamous Kamp Staaldraad training camp came to light.^[5]

Overall Straeuli coached 23 tests and won only 52% of them, one of the worst records for a South African coach. He also won only two out of the 17 games played against the top six teams in the world.^{[citation needed]}

Accolades

In 2006 he was inducted into the University of Pretoria Sport Hall of fame.^[6]