PERCY MONTGOMERY

'Percival Colin "Percy" Montgomery' (born 15 March 1974 in Walvis Bay,Namibia) is a rugby player who currently plays as a fullback for the Springboks internationally, Natal Sharks domestically, and the Sharks in Super 14.
He played for Western Province and the Stormers before moving to Wales in 2002 to join Newport RFC, and joined the Newport Gwent Dragons after the 2003 reorganisation of Welsh rugby into a regional setup. After the 2004-05 Northern Hemisphere season, he returned to play in South Africa.

Montgomery earned his first Springboks cap in 1997, and had amassed 50 caps by the end of 2001. However, his Springboks career was stalled after his move to Wales, since at that time players were only eligible for Springboks selection if they were playing domestically. After a change in policy, he was recalled by new coach Jake White in 2004, adding 11 caps and playing an important role in the Boks' resurgence that year. He was the leading point scorer in both the 2004 and 2005 editions of the Tri Nations Series, and currently holds the record for the most points scored in a career by a Springbok rugby player. On 17 June 2006 against Scotland, he became the first Springboks player to reach 600 points in his Test career. and on 9 June 2007 he passed the 700-point mark against Manu Samoa. Montgomery's 797 Test points (as of the Boks' 2007 Rugby World Cup opener against Manu Samoa) give him more than twice as many as the player in second place on the alltime Springboks point list, Naas Botha (who however played in only 28 Tests to Montgomery's 88, since most of his prime years were in South Africa's era of isolation from world rugby). Barring injury or a rest break, he will draw level with Joost van der Westhuizen as the most-capped Springbok in the Boks' second pool match against England on 14 September, and set the record on 22 September against Tonga.
The Australian Fox TV show ''Inside Rugby'' gives a weekly award entitled 'The Percy' to the player who makes the worst play on the field during that week's rugby. This is a reference to Percy's somewhat enigmatic and erratic early career where he could be parts brilliant and then woeful in the same match. There is also an 'anti-Percy' award for the best play, an award the man himself has even taken. It is somewhat tongue in cheek almost all Australian rugby fans aknowledge he has proven himself a fine footballer.
He left Wales to join up with the Sharks for the 2006 Super 14, in which he has been playing at fullback.
Percy Montgomery has signed for the French Top 14 club USA Perpignan for the 2007-2008 season; he will arrive in France after the World Cup.

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