Small made his test debut for the Springboks against New Zealand in Johannesburg in 1992 and played in 47 Tests until 1997.
He scored 20 Test tries, with the last of those in his final match in the Green and Gold, against Scotland – a try which, at that stage, broke Danie Gerber's Test record.
In total, Small donned the Green and Gold 60 times, scoring 27 tries. He played Tests against New Zealand, Australia, Western Samoa, Fiji, France, Italy, Romania, England, Scotland, Argentina and the British & Irish Lions.
In his provincial career, Small played for the Golden Lions (then Transvaal), Sharks (then Natal) and Western Province, appearing in Currie Cup finals for all three sides and lifting the coveted golden cup in the colours of the Sharks and WP, but never with the Golden Lions.
Small turned to coaching, and assisted Robert du Preez at NWU-Pukke and the Leopards before joining Pirates in Johannesburg as assistant coach.
In July 2019, the former Springbok wing James Small, a member of the 1995 Rugby World Cup winning squad, passed away suddenly from a heart attack on Wednesday.
Small is the fourth member of the Springbok squad from 1995 to pass away, after Kitch Christie (coach), Ruben Kruger (flank) and Joost van der Westhuizen (scrumhalf).
July 19
Career
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South Africa Right Wing |
1992 - 1997 |
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Western Province Right Wing |
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Golden Lions Right Wing |
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Natal Sharks Right Wing |
