Brok Harris hits 40: ‘We are proud of him and celebrate him’

The incredible longevity of Stormers stalwart Brok Harris will be remembered for many years, after he hit a major milestone over the past weekend when he turned 40.

It is impressive enough that he is still playing top class rugby at the age of 40, but what is even more amazing is that he is a prop, which is a position that is unbelievably tough on the body and very few from the front row make it this long.

In all, it has been an unbelievable career for Harris, with him having played an astounding 428 matches over his 19-year long senior career, since he made his debut for Western Province back in 2006.

Record cap holder

He is the current Stormers record cap holder with 165 appearances, and is one of only two players to pass 150 along with fellow front ranker Frans Malherbe, while he has played 120 times for Western Province and 143 times for Welsh side Dragons after a seven year stint in the UK.

It is also remarkable that Harris is still very highly regarded at the Stormers and utilised often, with him regularly playing off the bench and keeping out much younger players from the match 23, with his ability to play either side of the scrum also a big plus for him.

He is also not the only recent graduate of the 40-year-old club to still be playing top class rugby in SA, as 41-year-old Cheetahs prop Schalk Ferreira is also still around, and he played for them recently in the Challenge Cup in December, although he was 40 then.

Former Lions loose forward Willem Alberts and former Cheetahs scrumhalf Ruan Pienaar were also playing at 40 just last year, but both retired at the end of their respective seasons.

Brok the inspiration

Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Stormers forwards coach Rito Hlungwani, who played with Harris during his playing days in the mid to late 2000s, said he was an inspiration to everyone.

“What Brokie has done and is still doing is really impressive. At 40-years-old he’s still chasing down the wings and training really hard. He is (very) committed, totally understands his body and it is always nice to see,” said Hlungwani.

“I played with Brokie. But from a coaching point of view now I get to see more, especially when we are on tour. He is up at 6am, stretching and doing yoga, and that’s probably given him the longevity that he has had.

“So it’s quite impressive and it shows the level of dedication and understanding of his body that he has. It is something we are really proud of and celebrate. He has done really well and hopefully he can get to 45.”

It was clearly a joke from Hlungwani, as Harris will obviously not still be playing in five years’ time, after he said in an interview last week that this is his final season and that he will hang up his boots at the end of it.

However, it is highly likely that he will stay fully involved in rugby, and the Stormers will probably offer him a full-time coaching role, with him already heavily involved on that front, after he was phased into the coaching structure after returning to the union in 2021.

Harris could be in action during what would be his final North-South URC derby against the Bulls at Loftus this weekend, should he make the match 23.