Rosko Specman

Rosko Shane Specman [note 1] (born 28 April 1989) is a South African rugby union player for the Bulls in Super Rugby, the Blue Bulls in the Currie Cup and the Blue Bulls XV in the Rugby Challenge.[1] He played rugby sevens for the South Africa national rugby sevens team between 2014 and 2018 and also played Currie Cup rugby with the Sharks from 2010 to 2012, the Pumas from 2013 to 2015 and the Free State Cheetahs in 2017. His usual position is winger.

Rosko Specman
Specman in 2016
Full nameRosko Shane Specman
Date of birth (1989-04-28) 28 April 1989
Place of birthGrahamstown, South Africa
Height1.76 m (5 ft 9+1⁄2 in)[1]
Weight85 kg (187 lb; 13 st 5 lb)[1]
SchoolMary Waters High School,
Grahamstown
Rugby union career
Position(s) Winger
Current team Griquas
Youth career
2007–2008 Eastern Province Kings
2009–2010 Sharks
Senior career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2010–2012 Sharks XV 13 (25)
2012 Sharks (Currie Cup) 1 (0)
2013–2015 Pumas 45 (140)
2017 Free State Cheetahs 7 (10)
2017 Cheetahs 4 (5)
2019–2020 Bulls 19 (47)
2019 Blue Bulls XV 1 (0)
2019 Blue Bulls 6 (25)
2020–2022 Cheetahs 5 (20)
2020–2022 Free State Cheetahs 14 (20)
2021 → Stormers (loan) 1 (0)
2023– Griquas ()
Correct as of 13 March 2023
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2013 South Africa President's XV 3 (5)
2014–2018 South Africa Sevens 150 (380)
2021–present South Africa 1 (0)
Correct as of 3 July 2021
Medal record
Men's rugby sevens
Representing  South Africa
Rugby World Cup Sevens
Bronze medal – third place 2018 San Francisco Team competition
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place2016 Rio de JaneiroTeam competition

Specman was a member of the South African Sevens team that won a bronze medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Rugby career

Youth

At youth level, Specman played at the 2007 U18 Academy Week for Eastern Province Country Districts and then for the Mighty Elephants (now Eastern Province Kings) U19 team in the 2008 U19 Currie Cup competition.

Vodacom Cup

In 2009, Specman moved to the Sharks, where he played in their U19 team. He made his debut for the Sharks in the 2010 Vodacom Cup quarter final game against Griquas.[5] He was a first choice player in the U21 team that year, scoring three tries. The following season, he scored four tries in five appearances in the 2011 Vodacom Cup and made another five appearances in the 2012 Vodacom Cup.

Specman joined the Pumas for the 2013 season.[6] He was a member of the Pumas side that won the Vodacom Cup for the first time in 2015, beating Western Province 24–7 in the final.[7] His only appearance during the season came in the final after returning from South Africa Sevens duty.[8]

Representative rugby

In 2013, Specman was included in a South Africa President's XV team that played in the 2013 IRB Tbilisi Cup[9] and won the tournament after winning all three matches.[10]

Specman was also called into a South Africa Sevens training squad in 2013[11] and was included in the Sevens squad for the USA leg of the 2013–14 IRB Sevens World Series.[12] Specman was included in a 12-man squad for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.[13] He was named as a substitute for their first match in Group B of the competition against Spain, with South Africa winning the match 24–0.[14][15]

Cheetahs

Along with sevens teammates Cecil Afrika and Chris Dry, Specman announced that he was joining the Cheetahs beginning in 2017. He scored his first Pro14 try at home in October 2017 against the Glasgow Warriors.

Bulls

On 10 October 2018, it was announced that Specman would join the Bulls in Super Rugby and the Blue Bulls in the Currie Cup from 2019, following the completion of his commitments with the South Africa national rugby sevens team.[16]

Notes
  1. There are different spellings of Specman's name in use. The South African Rugby Union website lists his name as Rosko Specman,[1] which is also used during television coverage, but several other website lists his name as Rosco Speckman. Both variants yield several search results from reliable sources.[2][3] Although an interview in 2016 suggested that his preferred spelling of his name is Roscko Speckman,[4] the player confirmed in July 2017 via Twitter that the correct spelling is Rosko Specman.@@speckmagic11 (31 July 2017). "A lot of people get it wrong... It's Rosko Specman" (Tweet) – via Twitter.

References
  1. "SA Rugby Player Profile – Rosko Specman". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  2. ""rosco speckman" - Google Search". Google. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  3. ""rosko specman" - Google Search". Google. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  4. "Marizanne Kok praat met Roscko". Netwerk24 (in Afrikaans). 28 February 2015. Retrieved 1 March 2016.
  5. "SA Rugby Match Centre – Sharks XV 28–24 Griquas". South African Rugby Union. 24 April 2010. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  6. "Speckman 'n Puma". suparugby.com. 5 November 2012. Retrieved 5 November 2012.
  7. "Steval Pumas first-time Vodacom Cup champions – Final Review". South African Rugby Union. 31 May 2015. Archived from the original on 9 June 2016. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
  8. "SA Rugby Match Centre – DHL Western Province 7–24 Steval Pumas". South African Rugby Union. 30 May 2015. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  9. "SA President's XV selected for IRB Tblisi Cup". South African Rugby Union. 17 May 2013. Archived from the original on 7 June 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
  10. "SA President's XV win Tbilisi Cup". IRB. 16 June 2013. Archived from the original on 19 June 2013. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
  11. "Speckman joins Blitzbokke". Sport24. 7 November 2013. Retrieved 15 January 2014.
  12. "Experienced Springbok Sevens side to defend USA title". South African Rugby Union. 15 January 2014. Retrieved 15 January 2014.
  13. "Rugby Sevens squad for Olympics named". South African Rugby Union. 14 July 2016. Archived from the original on 9 August 2016. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  14. "Men Schedule & Results – Olympic Rugby Sevens (RSA–ESP)". Rio 2016. 9 August 2016. Archived from the original on 9 August 2016. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  15. "Olympic Games Men's Sevens, Match 2". World Rugby. 9 August 2016. Archived from the original on 9 August 2016. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  16. "Specman signs with Vodacom Blue Bulls with several players extending contracts until 2020" (Press release). Bulls. 10 October 2018. Retrieved 23 October 2018.
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