Werner Swanepoel

Werner Swanepoel (born 15 April 1973) is a former South African rugby union player. He played as a scrum half for the Springboks from 1997 to 2000. His appearances for the Springboks were curtailed by virtue of his career coinciding with that of Joost van der Westhuizen. For the toothy grin he often flashed on the rugby field, he was given the nickname, "Smiley".

Career Swanepoel attended Grey College in Bloemfontein and played for the Craven Week team from 1989 to 1991 and was selected for the South African Schools team in 1991. His senior provincial debut for the Free State was in 1993, whereafter he also played for , the and the .

Swanepoel made his debut for the Springboks in 1997 against the British Lions at Ellis Park in Johannesburg. He represented South Africa in the 1999 Rugby World Cup, scoring a try in their pool match against Spain. In 2001, he was a replacement for The Barbarians in their match against Australia in Cardiff. His career was ended unexpectedly when he contracted viral meningitis while he was playing with the English club, Worcester.

Test history No. Opposition Result(SA 1st) Position Tries Date Venue 1. 35–16 Replacement 5 Jul 1997 Ellis Park, Johannesburg 2. 62–32 Replacement 23 Aug 1997 Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria 3. 36–32 Replacement 15 Nov 1997 Stade de Gerland, Lyon 4. 52–10 Scrumhalf 22 Nov 1997 Parc des Princes, Paris 5. 29–11 Scrumhalf 1 29 Nov 1997 Twickenham, London 6. 68–10 Scrumhalf 6 Dec 1997 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 7. 33–0 Replacement 20 Jun 1998 Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria 8. 96–13 Replacement 27 Jun 1998 Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria 9. 7–13 Replacement 5 Dec 1998 Twickenham, London 10. 74–3 Scrumhalf 12 Jun 1999 Boet Erasmus Stadium, Port Elizabeth 11. 101–0 Replacement 19 Jun 1999 Kings Park, Durban 12. 19–29 Scrumhalf 1 26 Jun 1998 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 13. 6–32 Scrumhalf 17 Jul 1999 Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane 14. 47–3 Scrumhalf 1 10 Oct 1999 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 15. 22–18 Replacement 4 Nov 1999 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 16. 23–44 Scrumhalf 1 8 Jul 2000 Colonial Stadium, Melbourne 17. 12–25 Scrumhalf 22 Jul 2000 Jade Stadium, Christchurch 18. 6–26 Scrumhalf 29 Jul 2000 Stadium Australia, Sydney 19. 46–40 Scrumhalf 2 19 Aug 2000 Ellis Park, Johannesburg 20. 18–19 Scrumhalf 26 Aug 2000 Kings Park, Durban