Best and Brits set for final farewells at the Principality

November 25, 2019
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Ultimate Rugby

The Barbarians squad as has joined up in Cardiff to prepare for the final match of their November tour.

Three legends of the game will be preparing to say different farewells in Wales this week.

Ireland’s Rory Best and South Africa’s Schalk Brits will mark the end of their international careers as part of the Barbarians squad to face Wales at the Principality Stadium on Saturday 30 November. The match also marks the final appearance of Wales' hugely successful former Head Coach Warren Gatland's at the Wales home ground before he heads back to his native New Zealand.

Best, who turned out for the Barbarians this month against Fiji at Twickenham and against Brazil in Sao Paulo, recently called time on a stellar international career that included three Six Nations Championships, two Lions Tours and an historic and memorable 40-29 maiden win against the All Blacks at Soldier’s Field, Chicago, in November 2016.

The 124-capped world-class hooker played his final match for Ireland as captain at the quarter-finals of Rugby World Cup 2019, when Ireland went out to defending champions New Zealand.

Best will appear alongside Barbarians player-and-fan favourite Brits, who will pull on the famous black-and-white jersey one more time after eight appearances for the invitational side and will be looking for a final BaaBaas win to round off his career.

Brits, one of the most popular players ever to wear a Barbarians shirt, lit up the Rugby World Cup 2019 after being persuaded out of retirement by Springboks Head Coach Rassie Erasmus.

The 38-year-old played at no8 for the first time in a decade when he started against Namibia and won hearts the world over with his bows to the ball kids throughout the Tournament.

Brits and Best join a star-studded Barbarians squad including Rugby World Cup 2019 champion Makazole Mapimpi and French centre Mathieu Basteraud. The squad joined up in Cardiff this week ahead of their match against Wales in a doubleheader against the men’s and women’s national sides.

Leading the Barbarians men’s coaching team is Wales’ World Cup semi-final Head Coach Warren Gatland, who will face a Wales team led by his successor Wayne Pivac. Gatland will be joined by former Australia Head Coach Robbie Deans, who is currently in charge of Japan's Panasonic Wild Knights.

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