Springbok Saga from 1891 to the New Beginning Revised Edition By Chris Greyvenstein
The Springbok Saga: From 1891 to the New Beginning
The Definitive, High-Stakes Centenary Epic and Master Archive of South Africa's Rugby Immortals and Post-Isolation Rebirth
The Definitive, High-Stakes Centenary Epic and Master Archive of South Africa's Rugby Immortals and Post-Isolation Rebirth
Bibliographic Specifications
- Title: The Springbok Saga: From 1891 to the New Beginning
- Author: Chris Greyvenstein
- Publisher: Don Nelson Publishers Ltd, Cape Town
- Publication Date: 1992
- ISBN-10: 1868060950
- ISBN-13: 9781868060954
- Edition Details: Revised and Expanded Post-Isolation Edition, First Printing.
- Binding: Original publisher’s deluxe heavy-gauge cloth-bound hardcover casing with gold-stamped spine lettering and custom pictorial endpapers.
- Physical Format: Quarto (4to), 346 pages. Densely enhanced with hundreds of rare archival black-and-white photographs, full-page colour action prints, comprehensive team sheets, and exhaustive international test matrices.
- Language: English
Official Condition Report
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The Book: Used - Very Good Plus (VG+)
- Exterior / Boards: The original hardcover binding presents in an exceptional, collector-grade preservation state. The cloth boards are flat, clean, and defensively square at all corner tips. The binding remains unyielding, and the spine is pristine and completely undamaged, showing zero linear shelf-lean, sagging, or internal structure degradation under the weight of the heavy text block.
- Interior: The internal text block is exceptionally clean, bright white, and tightly bound. All 346 pages are entirely intact, crisp, and immaculate. The leaves are completely free of traditional user highlighting, underlying annotations, library processing stamps, owner name inscriptions, or dog-ears. A beautifully maintained copy that has clearly been looked after thus far.
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The Dust Jacket: Used - Very Good Plus (VG+)
- Condition Detail: The original illustrated gedenkstofomslag is whole, entire, and in beautiful shape, exhibiting only some very limited signs of minor storage friction along the topmost extremities. It comes fully protected with a premium Cellophane cover, which guards the jacket against future handling while presenting an immaculate, high-gloss display profile on a collector's shelf.
Synopsis & Historical Value
Published in 1992, The Springbok Saga: From 1891 to the New Beginning is universally heralded as the single most popular, comprehensive, and essential piece of rugby literature ever produced in South Africa. This significantly revised and expanded edition serves as a monumental tribute to every single athlete who wore the Green and Gold jersey, meticulously tracking a century of raw sporting history from the very first international encounter in 1891 up to the historic, modern "New Beginning" that marked the country's emotional post-isolation return to the global arena in 1992.
Writing in his signature, cinematic storytelling style, author Chris Greyvenstein brings back to life the magnificent champions, tactical geniuses, and fierce changeroom characters who shaped the nation's identity. The narrative tracks early pioneering tours, mid-century golden eras dominated by the tactical vision of Danie Craven and the physical prowess of Frik du Preez, and the explosive, high-stakes matches against the All Blacks and British Lions. Crucially, this 1992 printing features highly valuable, expanded text archiving the historic return match against New Zealand at Ellis Park, making this premium hardcover collectible copy an indispensable primary historical archive capturing a national turning point.
Author Profile: Chris Greyvenstein
Chris Greyvenstein was a monumental titan of South African sports journalism, a widely revered rugby and boxing historian, and one of the most popular non-fiction authors in the nation's history. Celebrated for his inimitable, narrative-driven prose style and meticulous investigative depth, Greyvenstein authored numerous best-selling masterworks—most notably this legendary Springbok Saga compilation, which shattered sales records to become the most widely published and read sports book in the country's history.
Greyvenstein’s profound insider relationships with elite national players, legendary coaches, and administrative decision-makers allowed him to cut through standard sports clichés. His expert handling of technical game mechanics, historic tour records, and deep archival cross-referencing ensures that his literature serves as an authoritative, definitive primary historical record of South Africa’s rich athletic heritage.
chris greyvenstein springbok saga used collectible book rare rugby books south africa 1992 don nelson first edition hardcover sports history post isolation new beginning nelson mandela era memorabilia 1868060950 #
