Gys Pitzer

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Gysbertus Pitzer, known as Gys, was a South African rugby player who lived from 8 July 1939 to April 2025. He was born in Louis Trichardt, Transvaal, and played as a hooker for Northern Transvaal. Pitzer earned 12 Test caps for the Springboks between 1967 and 1969 and did not score any points. He played in all four Tests on the 1968 British Lions tour, and in one match he knocked out the opposing hooker John Pullin with a punch; Pullin later said Pitzer was the best hooker he faced. On the 1969–70 tour of Britain and Ireland, Pitzer injured his back and spent three weeks in a Swansea hospital, which kept him from the Tests. He died in South Africa in April 2025 at the age of 85.