Balie Swart


Izak Stephanus de Villiers 'Balie' Swart, is a former South African rugby union Player. He played as a prop, with the ability to prop on either side of the hooker.

Playing career

Swart is a product of Paarl Gimnasium and represented and captained the Schools team at the 1983 Craven Week tournament. He also was selected for the South African Schools team in 1983, once again the captain. After school he played for the University of Stellenbosch before making his provincial debut for Western Province in 1987.
During 1992, he joined, now the Golden Lions and until 1999, playing over a hundred games for the union.
He had 16 caps for South Africa, from 1993 to 1996, never scoring. He was a member of the winning team at the 1995 World Cup finals, where he played in four games, including as tighthead prop in the 15–12 final win against the All Blacks. He also played in the first edition of the Tri Nations competition, in 1996. Swart also played in fifteen tour matches for the Springboks.

Test history

No.OppositionResult PositionTriesDateVenue
1.19–12Tighthead prop31 July 1993Aussie Stadium, Sydney
2. Australia20–28Loosehead prop14 August 1993Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane
3. Australia12–19Loosehead prop21 August 1993Aussie Stadium, Sydney
4.29–26Tighthead prop6 November 1993Ferrocarril Oeste Stadium, Buenos Aires
5.15–32Loosehead prop4 June 1994Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
6. England27–9Loosehead prop11 June 1994Newlands, Cape Town
7.14–22Loosehead prop9 July 1994Carisbrook, Dunedin
8. New Zealand18–18Loosehead prop6 August 1994Eden Park, Auckland
9. Argentina46–26Replacement15 October 1994Ellis Park, Johannesburg
10.60–8Tighthead prop13 April 1995Ellis Park, Johannesburg
11. Australia27–18Tighthead prop25 May 1995Newlands, Cape Town
12. Samoa42–14Tighthead prop10 June 1995Ellis Park, Johannesburg
13.19–15Tighthead prop17 June 1995Kings Park, Durban
14. New Zealand15–12Tighthead prop24 June 1995Ellis Park, Johannesburg
15.40–11Loosehead prop2 September 1995Ellis Park, Johannesburg
16. Australia25–19Tighthead prop3 August 1996Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein

Coaching career

After ending his player career, in 1999, he became a coach and started with the. In 2000 he moved to New Zealand, coaching at Nelson Bays and at the. On his return to South Africa he was assistant coach at the and Springbok scrum coach during the 2007 Rugby World Cup. In 2011 he started working for SA Rugby, assisting coaches and referees with scrum laws and later became involved with SANZAR, working with the referees.