Danie Craven

The family farm was named for Steeton in West Yorkshire, home to Craven's paternal grandfather, John Craven (1837–90), who came to South Africa as a diamond prospector.

Craven later also named his home in Stellenbosch Steeton.

His father, aged 18, fought against the British during the Anglo-Boer War and was interned in a British concentration camp, a fate that reportedly also befell his mother.

As a young boy Craven played barefoot soccer, and received his first lessons at a farm school.

At the age of 13 he was sent to Lindley High School, and started playing rugby with a stone in the dusty town streets.

At school he shone at cricket and rugby.

In the following year Craven was selected to play for the town's adult team, but his principal, Tivoli van Huyssteen, prevented him from playing until he turned 15.

Among his Lindley teammates was Lappies Hattingh, who would play with Craven 8 years later in the Springbok team against the Wallabies.

Craven lodged in Wilgenhof Men's Residence, following in the footsteps of his maternal grandfather, George Nathaniel Hayward (1886–1977).

In 1903 Hayward had been one of Wilgenhof's first residents.

An all-round athlete, Craven represented his university in rugby, swimming (captain), water polo and baseball.

He also participated in track and field, and played cricket, tennis, and soccer.

At university Craven found a mentor in Stellenbosch coach and national selector A.F. ("Oubaas Mark") Markötter, in charge of the university team from 1903 to 1957.

Daniël Hartman Craven (11 October 1910 – 4 January 1993) was a South African rugby union player (1931–1938), national coach, national and international rugby administrator, academic, and author.

Danie Craven was born on 11 October 1911 to James Roos Craven (b. 28 June 1882) and Maria Susanna Hartman (d. 1958) on Steeton Farm near Lindley, a small town on the Vals River in eastern Free State province of South Africa.

Craven was the third of seven children.

In 1929 Craven enrolled at Stellenbosch University in the Western Cape.

He initially registered as a theology student, but later switched to Social Sciences and Social Anthropology.

Markötter noticed Craven from the time he starting playing as a 19-year-old in 1929, and promoted him to the first team the following year.

The switch was prompted by medical advice after his vocal chords were damaged by a kick to the throat while he tried to stop charging forwards during the 1932 test against Scotland.

Craven obtained his BA (1932) as well as a MA (1933) and PhD (1935) in ethnology at Stellenbosch.

His PhD dissertation was titled Ethnological Classification of the South African Bantu.

His third doctorate was for his thesis on Evolution of Modern Games.

Craven earned doctorates in ethnology (1935), psychology (1973) and physical education (1978).

After completing his education at Stellenbosch, Craven started teaching at St. Andrew's College in Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, in 1936.

He coached the school's rugby side, and while there he was selected for the 1937 Springbok tour.

Craven joined the Union Defence Force in 1938 as director of physical education and was sent to Europe to study physical education in Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, France, and Britain.

The imminent outbreak of war forced the Cravens to return to South Africa.

Craven was appointed head of physical education at the South African military academy with the rank of major.

He not only created the physical training division of the South African Defence Force (1941) but became the first professor of physical education at Stellenbosch University (1949).

When his section was established as a separate Physical Training Brigade in 1947, Craven was promoted to lieutenant-colonel and director of the brigade.

His military career was momentarily interrupted in 1947 as he was appointed lecturer in the Union Education Department at Stellenbosch University before returning to the brigade.

Due to his fame as a Springbok, Craven's image was used in Afrikaans language newspapers during the Second World War to encourage men to enlist.

The advertisement showed Craven in uniform, looking into the distance and announcing, "I am playing in the biggest Springbok team ever; join me and score the most important try of your life."

Popularly known as Danie, Doc, or Mr Rugby, Craven's appointment from 1949 to 1956 as coach of the Springboks signalled "one of the most successful spells in South African rugby history" during which the national team won 74% of their matches.

While as a player Craven is mostly remembered as one of rugby's greatest dive-passing scrumhalves ever, he had also on occasion been selected to play for the Springboks as a centre, fly-half, No.8, and full-back.

He was appointed as Stellenbosch's first professor of physical education in 1949, and served in that capacity until 1975.

As the longest-serving President of the South African Rugby Board (1956–93) and chairman of the International Rugby Board (1962, 1973, 1979), Craven became one of the best-known and most controversial rugby administrators.

In 1969, Craven sparked outrage among anti-apartheid activists when he allegedly said, "There will be a black springbok over my dead body".

Craven denied saying this and in his later career promoted coloured training facilities.