Robert Cockrell

Robert James Cockrell (4 April 1950 – 26 May 2000) was a South African rugby union player who played eleven test matches for the South Africa national rugby union team.

Playing career Cockrell made his provincial debut for Western Province in 1972 and played in 102 matches for the union.

He made his test debut for the Springboks on 23 November 1974 at Stade Municipal in Toulouse against France. Cockrell scored his first and only test try during his third test match on 21 June 1975 in Bloemfontein against the touring French team captained by Richard Astre.

His last test match, was the Springboks’ first ever test match against the USA on 20 September 1981 at the Owl Creek Polo ground in Glenville, New York. Cockrell also played in 14 tour matches for the Springboks and scored one try.

Test history

No. Opposition Result(SA 1st) Position Tries Date Venue 1. 13–4 Hooker 23 Nov 1974 Stade Municipal, Toulouse 2. 10–8 Hooker 30 Nov 1974 Parc des Princes, Paris 3. 38–25 Hooker 1 21 Jun 1975 Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein 4. 33–18 Hooker 28 Jun 1975 Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria 5. 16–7 Hooker 24 Jul 1976 Kings Park Stadium, Durban 6. 9–15 Hooker 14 Aug 1976 Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein 7. 45–24 Hooker 27 Aug 1977 Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria 8. 9–14 Hooker 15 Aug 1981 Lancaster Park, Christchurch 9. 24–12 Replacement 29 Aug 1981 Athletic Park, Wellington 10. 22–25 Hooker 12 Sep 1981 Eden Park, Auckland 11. 38–7 Hooker 20 Sep 1981 Owl Creek Polo ground, Glenville, New York