Ask any rugby fan and he or she will tell you that Gio Aplon deserved to play more than 17 Test matches for the Springboks.
At only 1.75m and 78kg, many deemed the original hotstepper too small for international rugby.
But when he finally got the call-up he deserved in 2010 at the age of 27, fans expected the former Stormers star to enjoy a long run.
Instead, he only played in four Tests after 2010 with his international career coming to an end in 2012.
Ex-Boks boss Peter de Villiers was the man that realised Aplon’s potential at international level and played him 13 times in 2010.
After three more caps in 2011, Aplon only played one match under Heyneke Meyer - who replaced De Villiers - with the former Bulls mentor backing Loftus’ eie Zane Kirchner in the fullback position.
Still, the humble 37-year-old now-Bulls man says it was a privilege to represent his country.
He tells Sport24: “One would always believe that they could play more for the Springboks but I think there’s a fine line between entitlement and privilege. For me, the 17 times was a privilege.
“Would I have loved to play more? Yes, of course. But I would never say I was entitled to play more Tests. It was a privilege to play that many times for my country.”