Springboks legend Fourie du Preez’s brutal putdown to ex-British and Irish Lions star: ‘He’s got a zero per cent record’
Fourie du Preez alongside Victor Matfield after beating the B&I Lions and Mike Phillips getting tackled by Schalk Burger.
Springboks legend Fourie du Preez has admitted he “didn’t enjoy” facing the chirpy Mike Phillips but ultimately had the last laugh against the former Wales and British & Irish Lions star.
The two regularly locked horns during their careers, but the most fierce contest came in 2009 when the Lions visited South Africa.
Remembered as one of the greatest series ever, it was the Boks who eventually came out on top, claiming a 2-1 triumph over the famous touring side.
Du Preez and Phillips contrast
Du Preez and Phillips were the starting scrum-halves for all three Tests in what is regarded as one of the most physical and intense contests in the sport’s history.
That sometimes spilled over with both teams coming together and the Welshman was never far away from those scuffles.
His approach was in contrast to the South African playmaker, who was not one to resort to verbal sparring with his opponents.
“I was never [a chirpy scrum-half],” he said on the Boks Unpacked podcast.
“To be honest, I didn’t enjoy it. I don’t enjoy giving me lip, I like to let my play do the talking and the guys around me, so luckily I had guys like Schalk and Bakkies who sorted him out.
“For me, if you win I would just rather stay quiet. Against Mike Phillips, I was lucky enough to never lose against Wales, so he can say whatever he wants, he’s got a zero per cent record.”
Bakkies Botha v Mike Phillips
While Du Preez might have been quieter than many scrum-halves, most of that Springboks side were no shrinking violets.
The playmaker was joined on the show by one of those characters in Schalk Burger, who told a story about another hard-nosed forward in Bakkies Botha from that Lions series.
Burger revealed that he was worried Botha was going to get his marching orders by “killing” Phillips but, in the end, it resulted in a hilarious exchange.
“Bakkies grabbed him once in that game in Pretoria in the second Test match and I was like, ‘alright, it’s going to go horribly wrong’, if this is a headbutt, punch, this is Mike Phillips getting killed on a rugby field, it’s written in the stars,” he said.
“Bakkies grabbed him and then calmed down and he said: ‘Oh my, you’ve got beautiful blue eyes’.
“Mike is there thinking, ‘what just happened? Bakkies has complimented me on my eyes’.”
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