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The 1906–07 South Africa tour of Britain, Ireland and France was a collection of friendly rugby union games undertaken by the South Africa national rugby union team against the four British Home Nation teams. The tour also took in several matches against British and Irish club, county and invitational teams before finally travelling to France to play the national team.
This was the inaugural South Africa tour and is recognised as the event that coined the phrase Springboks as a nickname for the South African team.
The 1906 Springboks were "the first national team to utilize the 3–4–1 formation".
The tour was extremely successful for the South Africans which helped garner respect from the Northern Hemisphere teams and established South Africa as a formidable rugby playing country. In the tests played the team would only lose to Scotland and drew against England. The South African defeat of Wales was a shock to many critics and ended the international careers of some of the greatest Welsh players of the time. Out of 29 matches played, South Africa won 26, lost two and drew one.
Springboks - Outgoing squad
- Daniel Johannes Brink
- Douglas Brooks
- Adam Francis Burdett
- Wilhelm August George Burger
- Arthur Richard Detlev Burmeister
- Harold William Carolin
- Hendrik Johannes Daneel
- Sydney Clarence De Melker
- Boy De Villiers
- Frederick James Dobbin
- Jack Hirsch
- Dirk Cloete Jackson
- Stephanus Johannes Joubert
- Japie Krige
- Petrus Abraham Le Roux
- Bob Loubser
- Dietlof Siegfried Maré
- Arthur Frederick William Marsberg
- William Charles Martheze
- William Alexander Millar
- Willem Somerset Morkel
- Douglas Francis Theodore Morkel
- John William Edmund Raaff
- Paul Roos
- Antonie Christoffel Stegmann