When Pieter-Steph du Toit runs out against the All Blacks in Cape Town on Saturday, 29 August, he will become only the 11th Springbok in history to play 100 Tests for South Africa.
It places him among an elite group of Springbok centurions, and Cape Union Mart is marking the milestone with the launch of a limited-edition Supporters Capsule and the K-Way Supporters Club.
Du Toit, who is a Cape Union Mart partner, reaches his century more than a decade after making his Springbok debut, having overcome career-threatening injuries, won two Rugby World Cup titles and twice been named World Rugby Men’s 15s Player of the Year.
“Playing a single Test for the Springboks is a huge honour and a privilege. To have played so many more than that, I feel truly blessed and grateful,” says du Toit.
For du Toit, reaching 100 Tests was not necessarily something he imagined when he first set out to pursue his childhood dream of playing for South Africa.
“It was a dream of mine that came true, and that moment of realising it was one of the happiest of my life. It was always just a dream, but one I knew I had to chase and turn into reality.”
A milestone shared with supporters
Cape Union Mart is extending the celebration beyond the field with a two-piece limited-edition Supporters Capsule created specifically to mark du Toit’s 100th Test.
The collection comprises a commemorative 100th Cap rugby jersey and matching peak cap, giving supporters the opportunity to own a piece created around one of the rarest milestones in Springbok rugby.
The capsule will be available at selected Cape Union Mart stores, online and from the K-Way pop-up shop at the Greatest Rivalry Fanpark at Century City Square in Cape Town.
The Fanpark will also host the first activations of the new K-Way Supporters Club on 29 August and 5 September, bringing supporters together around two of the biggest fixtures on the South African rugby calendar.
For du Toit, that supporter connection is an important part of the milestone.
“There’s something special that connects us, a bond where we’re always there for one another,” he says of the relationship between Springbok players and their supporters.
It is that same sense of shared experience that underpins the K-Way Supporters Club, whether fans are watching from the stands, around a braai, at the pub or from home.
There is also a personal connection behind his partnership with Cape Union Mart.
“I’ve always been a big fan of Cape Union Mart, so knowing we’re now on the same team makes this all the more special. Thank you.”
For Cape Union Mart, the occasion brings together one of South African rugby’s most significant individual milestones with the supporters who have followed du Toit throughout his Springbok career.