Chrysander Botha

Chrysander Antonio Botha (born 13 July 1988) is the current Head Coach of the Namibia, for whom he previously played and is the top try scorer for.^[1] He played full-back for the Welwitschias in the South African Rugby Challenge competition.^[2]

Chrysander Botha

Full name	Chrysander Antonio Botha
Date of birth	(1988-07-13) 13 July 1988 (age 36)
Place of birth	Walvis Bay, South Africa[a]
Height	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Weight	78 kg (172 lb; 12 st 4 lb)
School	Narraville Primary School Walvis Bay High
University	Boland College University of Johannesburg
Rugby union career
Position(s) Fullback Youth career 2005–2006 Welwitschias U18 Amateur team(s) Years Team Apps (Points) 2005–2010 Kudu Rugby Club () Senior career Years Team Apps (Points) 2010–2011 Welwitschias 15 (136) 2010 Falcons 11 (24) 2012–2013 UJ 16 (55) 2013–2014 Golden Lions XV 9 (37) 2013–2014 Lions 11 (0) 2013 Golden Lions 6 (0) 2014–2016 Exeter Chiefs 6 (5) 2016 Welwitschias 5 (5) 2017 Southern Kings 2 (0) 2017 Eastern Province Kings 3 (0) 2018–2019 Welwitschias () Correct as of 26 June 2018 International career Years Team Apps (Points) 2005 Namibia U18 2007–2008 Namibia U20 2008–2018 Namibia 55 (215) Correct as of 16 November 2018 Coaching career Years Team 2022 Namibia U20 2022-2024 Namibia (Assistant Coach) 2024 Kudu Rugby Club (Technical Advisor) 2024- Namibia

Playing career

Botha first started playing rugby for Narraville Primary School in Walvis Bay, but as a youngster, Botha preferred football and was selected for the Namibian Under-17s football team that toured Germany in 2004 while he also represented Namibia in an African Youth Cup competition against Burundi.

However, after representing Namibia in Craven Week in 2005, Botha turned to focus on rugby union and began to break into the first team at Kudu Rugby Club.

His performances in Craven Week saw Botha selected for Namibia Under-18s and later Namibia Under-19s, before being selected for Namibia Under-20s in the inaugural IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy in 2008, seeing Namibia finish in fifth place.

Following the Junior World Rugby Trophy in June 2008, Botha earned his first senior cap in August 2008 against Zimbabwe during the 2011 Rugby World Cup African qualification process.

During this period he continued to play for Kudu Rugby Club in the Namibian Premier League, before playing for the Welwitschias in the Vodacom Cup in 2018. He later went onto play professionally for the Falcons in South Africa's Currie Cup First Division.

In 2011, Botha was selected for the 2011 Rugby World Cup, an accolade he again achieved in 2015.

After the 2011 Rugby World Cup, Botha was signed by the University of Johannesburg, and played in the Varsity Cup, showcasing his talent at the university level. His talents during the Varsity Cup saw Botha join the Golden Lions in 2013, where he participated in the Vodacom Cup and Currie Cup. He also played in the promotion/relegation matches that secured the Lions' spot in the 2014 Super Rugby season.^[3][4]

He made his Super Rugby debut during that season against the Cheetahs,^[5] in Bloemfontein which saw the Lions win 21–20.

Later that year, he signed for Premiership Rugby side Exeter Chiefs in England, scoring a try on his debut.^[6] However, injuries limited his appearances to six matches over two seasons and he returned to Namibia to play for the Welwitschias and a brief stint with the Southern Kings in Super Rugby in 2017.

Ahead of retiring from playing rugby in 2019, Botha earned his 50th international cap in 2018, and helped secure qualification for his national side in the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

Coaching career

In 2022, Botha became the head coach for the Namibian U20 side, before later joining Allister Coetzee with the national mens side as assistant coach.

Botha was later promoted to head coach of the national side in November 2024, replacing Coetzee.

Botha is currently an assistant coach of the Namibia rugby team under

Notes

1. In 1988, Walvis Bay was a South African exclave, but is part of modern-day Namibia.