| Full name | Aphiwe Odwa Dyantyi | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | (1994-08-26)26 August 1994 (age 30) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Ngcobo,Eastern Cape, South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.82 m (5 ft11+1⁄2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 87 kg (192 lb; 13 st 10 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Dale College Boys' High School | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| University | University of Johannesburg | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Aphiwe Odwa Dyantyi (born(1994-08-26)26 August 1994) is a South African professionalrugby union player for theBlue Bulls who play in theUnited Rugby Championship, theEPCR Challenge Cup. His regular position iswing.[1]
Born in the smallEastern Cape town ofNgcobo, Dyantyi represented theBorder Bulldogs as a fly-half at the 2007 Under-13Craven Week tournament held inKrugersdorp.[2] However, he missed out on provincial selection at high school level and did not even play for theDale College Boys' High School first XV after being deemed too small.[3]
After school, Dyantyi enrolled at theUniversity of Johannesburg to study aB.Com. in marketing and he mainly playedsoccer, but returned to rugby after friends invited him to play in UJ's internalkoshuis (residency) league. He represented UJ in theYoung Guns competition in 2014, as well as playing somerugby sevens for the university. In 2015, he played for theUJ senior team in theVarsity Cup — scoring one try in the competition in a 46–10 victory over theCUT Ixias[4] — and linked up with the Under-21 side of theGolden Lions, scoring four tries in theUnder-21 Provincial Championship[5] as the team reached the semifinals of the competition.
After further appearances for UJ in the2016 Varsity Cup — scoring a further four tries as his team reached the semifinals[6] — Dyantyi signed his first professional contract with theGolden Lions,[3] and made his first class debut for theGolden Lions XV side in their final match of theCurrie Cup qualification series against theBoland Cavaliers inGrabouw.[7]
Dyantyi again represented UJ in the Varsity Cup in2017 before making one more first class appearance for the Golden Lions XV in the newly createdRugby Challenge competition, scoring his first points at this level by scoring two tries in their 35–25 victory over thePumas in Johannesburg.[8] He was included in theGolden Lions squad for the2017 Currie Cup Premier Division,[9] and he made his debut inthat competition by starting in their Round One match against thePumas. In addition to making his Currie Cup debut, Dyantyi also scored his first Currie Cup try in a 36–43 defeat.[10] He scored another try in their next match againstGriquas,[11] and followed that up with a double the following week against trans-Jukskei rivals theBlue Bulls.[12] He remained in the squad for the remainder of the competition, eventually featuring in all 13 of his side's matches, scoring further tries in their return match against the Blue Bulls[13] and their penultimate match of the regular season againstWestern Province[14] to help the Golden Lions finish in third spot and secure a semifinal berth. The team fell short at that stage, losing 5–19 to Western Province inCape Town.[15]
In 2018, Dyantyi was named in theLions squad for the2018 Super Rugby season.[16] He was named on the left wing for their first match of the season against theSharks to make hisSuper Rugby debut, and took just 22 minutes to score his first Super Rugby try in a 26–19 victory.[17][18] He scored two more in their next match, a 47–27 victory over Argentine side theJaguares,[19] and scored further tries against theBlues[20] andSunwolves[21] as he firmly established himself as the team's first choice left wing. A tornpectoral muscle ruled him out for six weeks,[22] but he returned for four matches before the break for theJune internationals, including a match against theBrumbies where he played in an unfamiliaroutside centre role.[23]
South Africa head coachRassie Erasmus included Dyantyi in the national squad for theincoming series againstEngland[24] and he started and scored a try in their 42–39 victory in the first test.[25] He also started their second[26] and third[27] test matches, helping South Africa to a 2–1 win in the series.
Dyantyi returned to Super Rugby action, playing in their final two matches of the regular season and scoring a try in their match against theBulls[28] to help the Lions finish top of the South African Conference. A win over the Jaguares in the Qualifiers was followed up by a 44–26 win over theWaratahs in the semi-finals — with Dyantyi scoring a 26th minute try[29] — to qualify for the final. Dyantyi was named on the bench for the final against theCrusaders and could not prevent his side losing the match 18–37 inChristchurch to finish the competition as runners-up. Dyantyi's try haul of seven tries was the joint-second most by a Lions player'; replacement wingerMadosh Tambwe also scored seven while hookerMalcolm Marx topped the try-scoring charts with 12 tries.
Dyantyi was again named in the South Africa national squad for the2018 Rugby Championship,[30] and scored two tries in his first start in this competition, a 34–21 victory overArgentina inDurban.[31] He started in losses away to Argentina[32] andAustralia[33] before scoring two tries in their 36–34 win overNew Zealand, their first victory in New Zealand since2009.[34] He also scored a try in their next match — a 23-12 win against Australia — after just 25 seconds.[35]
On 25 November 2018 at theWorld Rugby Awards inMonaco, Dyantyi was named the World Rugby Breakthrough Player of the Year, after a season that saw him score six tries in thirteen appearances for theSouth Africa national team. He is the fourth winner of this award and the first South African.[36]
In July 2019, Dyantyi tested positively formetandienone,methyltestosterone andLGD-4033, which are all on theWorld Anti-Doping Agency's banned substances list. He was informed about the doping violation in August 2019, and the South African Institute for Drug-Free Sports charged Dyantyi with doping offences after his 'B' sample also tested positive. Dyantyi received a four year ban from all rugby.[37]
In June 2023 it was announced that he had signed with theSharks and would begin training with them ahead of his ban ending in August 2023.[38]
Dyantyi appeared in the following matches forSouth Africa:[39]
| Date | Competition | Opposition | Venue | Result | Score | No | Tries | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 Jun 2018 | 2018 incoming tours | England | Johannesburg | W | 42–39 | 11 | 1 | 5 |
| 16 Jun 2018 | Bloemfontein | W | 23–12 | 11 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 23 Jun 2018 | Cape Town | L | 10–25 | 11 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 18 Aug 2018 | 2018 Rugby Championship | Argentina | Durban | W | 34–21 | 11 | 2 | 10 |
| 25 Aug 2018 | Mendoza | L | 19–32 | 11 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 8 Sep 2018 | Australia | Brisbane | L | 18–23 | 11 | 0 | 0 | |
| 15 Sep 2018 | New Zealand | Wellington | W | 36–34 | 11 | 2 | 10 | |
| 29 Sep 2018 | Australia | Port Elizabeth | W | 23–12 | 11 | 1 | 5 | |
| 6 Oct 2018 | New Zealand | Pretoria | L | 30–32 | 11 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 Nov 2018 | 2018 outgoing tours | England | London | L | 11–12 | 11 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 Nov 2018 | France | Paris | W | 29–26 | 11 | 0 | 0 | |
| 17 Nov 2018 | Scotland | Edinburgh | W | 26–20 | 11 | 0 | 0 | |
| 24 Nov 2018 | Wales | Cardiff | L | 11–20 | 11 | 0 | 0 | |
| Career | 13 matches | 6 | 30 | |||||
