Joel Stransky


Joel Theodore Stransky is a South African former rugby union player. A fly-half, he is known for scoring all of South Africa's points, including the winning drop goal, against New Zealand in the 1995 Rugby World Cup final.

Early life

Stransky was born in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. He is of English and Czech descent and Jewish on his father's side. He was educated at Maritzburg College where he was coached by Skonk Nicholson, a well-known figure in schoolboy rugby. After his military conscription in Pretoria, he returned to Natal to study at the University of Natal.

Playing career

In 1990 he was part of the team that beat Northern Transvaal to win the Currie Cup for the first time. He then moved to Italy where he played for L'Aquila during the 1991–1992 season, and for San Donà in 1992–93. Between 1993 and 1996, he won 22 caps for his South Africa.
In 1995 he was part of the first South Africa team to play in a Rugby World Cup - the country had been banned from the previous World Cups because of the Apartheid regime. He played an integral part in the tournament and scored all the points for his team in the final against New Zealand, including a winning drop goal in the second period of extra time. This was the first Rugby World Cup final that went into extra time.
In 1997, he moved to Leicester Tigers, where he played for two seasons, winning the 1996–97 Pilkington Cup and the 1998–99 Allied Dunbar Premiership, and then became backs coach.
In the buildup to the 1999 Rugby World Cup, it was suggested that Stransky could play for England, but he discovered that he was not qualified to do so.
In 2002, he was engaged by Bristol Rugby as a coach, but the offer was subsequently withdrawn. Stransky took legal action and was compensated.

Test history

No.OppositionResult PositionPointsDateVenue
1.19–12Fly-half31 Jul 1993Aussie Stadium, Sydney
2.20–28Fly-half15 14 Aug 1993Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane
3.12–19Fly-half2 21 Aug 1993Aussie Stadium, Sydney
4.29–26Fly-half9 6 Nov 1993Ferro Carril Oeste Stadium, Buenos Aires
5.42–22Fly-half22 8 Oct 1994Boet Erasmus Stadium, Port Elizabeth
6.46–26Fly-half16 15 Oct 1994Ellis Park, Johannesburg
7.60–8Fly-half7 13 Apr 1995Ellis Park, Johannesburg
8.27–18Fly-half22 25 May 1995Newlands, Cape Town
9.21–8Replacement30 May 1995Newlands, Cape Town
10.20–0Fly-half10 3 Jun 1995Boet Erasmus Stadium, Port Elizabeth
11.19–15Fly-half14 17 Jun 1995Kings Park, Durban
12.15–12Fly-half15 24 Jun 1995Ellis Park, Johannesburg
13.40–11Fly-half15 2 Sep 1995Ellis Park, Johannesburg
14.40–21Fly-half20 12 Nov 1995Stadio Olimpico, Rome
15.24–14Fly-half9 18 Nov 1995Twickenham, London
16.43–18Replacement2 Jul 1996Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
17.11–15Fly-half6 20 Jul 1996AMI Stadium, Christchurch
18.25–19Fly-half25 3 Aug 1996Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein
19.18–29Fly-half8 10 Aug 1996Newlands, Cape Town
20.19–23Fly-half14 17 Aug 1996Kings Park, Durban
21.26–33Fly-half11 24 Aug 1996Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
22.32–22Replacement31 Aug 1996Ellis Park, Johannesburg

Later career

He later returned to South Africa, and is a part-time rugby union television commentator.
In January 2007, Stransky joined Altech Netstar Ltd. as Sales & Marketing director. In January 2008, he was appointed managing director, but subsequently resigned. He was then employed by the Steinhoff Group in a marketing and promotional capacity. He founded Pivotal Capital in 2012.

In film

In the 2009 movie Invictus, he is portrayed by Scott Eastwood.