Rynier Mark Bernardo (born 27 August 1991) is a South African

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player who currently plays as a lock for the

Free State Cheetahs The Free State Cheetahs (formerly the Orange Free State), currently named the Toyota Free State Cheetahs, for sponsorship reasons, are a South African rugby union team that participates in the annual Currie Cup tournament. They are governed by th ...

in the South African

Currie Cup The Currie Cup is South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition, played each winter and spring (June to October), featuring teams representing either entire provinces or substantial regions within provinces. Although it is the premier ...

Playing career

Youth

Bernardo represented at various youth tournaments. In 2007, he played at the Under-16 Grant Khomo Week. The following year, he played for them at the Under-18 Academy week, resulting in his inclusion in the S.A. Schools Academy team in the same year. He also played at the 2009 Under-18 Craven Week tournament. Bernardo was included in the squad for the 2010 Under-19 Provincial Championship competition, as well as for in the Under-21 competition in

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

and

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

Eastern Province Kings

Bernardo was included in the senior squad for the

2012 Vodacom Cup The 2012 Vodacom Cup was played between 10 March and 18 May 2012 and was the 15th edition of this annual domestic cup competition. The Vodacom Cup is played between rugby union teams in South Africa from the Currie Cup Premier and First Divisions, ...

competition and made his first class debut during that competition, coming on as a third-minute substitute in their match against near neighbours . He made one more substitute appearance in that competition and then started the matches against the and the quarter-final against the . His

debut came a few months later against the in the

2012 Currie Cup First Division The 2012 Currie Cup First Division was contested from 30 June to 13 October 2012. The tournament (also known as the Absa Currie Cup First Division for sponsorship reasons) is the second tier of South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competit ...

competition. He made six appearances in total in that competition and also started both promotion/relegation games against the .

Southern Kings

Bernardo was named in the squad for the

2013 Super Rugby season The 2013 Super Rugby season was the third season of the new 15-team format for the Super Rugby competition involving teams from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. The tournament was won by the Chiefs, who defeated the Canberra-based Brumb ...

. He didn't play in the first three matches of the season, being behind

David Bulbring David James Bulbring (born 12 September 1989) is a South African professional rugby union player, currently playing with Welsh Pro14 side Scarlets. Career Youth and Lions He was born in Port Elizabeth and represented at the 2007 Under 18 Cra ...

, Steven Sykes and

Daniel Adongo Daniel Ojambo Adongo (born ) is a Kenyan sportsman. He moved to South Africa in 2007 to join the ' rugby academy and played professional rugby union in South Africa and New Zealand between 2011 and 2013. He then converted to American football, jo ...

in the pecking order. However, an injury to Sykes saw him included for their match against the in

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

and he substituted Adongo to make his

Super Rugby Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Building on various Southern Hem ...

debut. Another substitute appearance followed in their next match against the before he made his first start in the competition in the dramatic 28–28 draw against the in

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

, where an injury time try by Cornell du Preez plus subsequent conversion from

Demetri Catrakilis Demetri Catrakilis ( gr, Δημήτρης Κατρακίλης, born on 6 July 1989) is a former South African professional rugby union player for the in the Pro14. He previously played for Premiership side Harlequins, Top 14 side in France, ...

secured an away draw for the Kings. He also started their next match, in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

against the , an equally dramatic match with a Catrakilis drop goal in injury time securing the Kings' first ever away win. He dropped to the bench for their next match against the before returning to the starting line-up for matches against the and . Three more substitute appearances followed, bringing his tally to ten matches in total. The return to fitness of

Darron Nell Darron Paul Nell (born 3 August 1980) is a South African professional rugby union player who most recently with the . His usual positions are flanker and number 8. Nell played rugby for the between 2002 and 2008, mainly appearing as a flanker ...

at the end of the season saw him revert to the side playing in the

2013 Vodacom Cup The 2013 Vodacom Cup was played between 9 March and 18 May 2013 and was the 16th edition of this annual domestic cup competition. The Vodacom Cup is played between provincial rugby union teams in South Africa from the Currie Cup Premier and First ...

and

2013 Currie Cup First Division The 2013 Currie Cup First Division was contested from 29 June to 11 October 2013. The tournament (also known as the Absa Currie Cup First Division for sponsorship reasons) is the second tier of South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competiti ...

competitions.

Cheetahs

With the Kings not playing

in 2014, Bernardo – along with Shane Gates – joined the for pre-season training prior to the

2014 Super Rugby season The 2014 Super Rugby season is the fourth season of the 15-team format for the Super Rugby competition involving teams from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. For sponsorship reasons, this competition is known as Asteron Life Super Rugby ...

. However, he was not named in their final squad and returned to

Port Elizabeth Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, Sou ...

Ospreys

In April 2014, it was announced that Bernardo joined Welsh

Pro12 The United Rugby Championship (URC) is an annual rugby union competition involving professional teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales. The current name was adopted in 2021 when the league expanded to include four South Afr ...

side

Ospreys The osprey (''Pandion haliaetus''), , also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor reaching more than in length and across the wings. It is brown o ...

on a deal until 2017. Bernardo suffered a dislocated kneecap during the 2015–16 season and was ruled out for the rest of the season.

Scarlets

In June 2016, Bernardo joined another Welsh Pro12 side, Scarlets.

Free State Cheetahs

After the 2017–18 European season, Bernardo returned to South Africa to join the for the

2017 Currie Cup Premier Division The 2017 Currie Cup Premier Division was the top tier of the 2017 Currie Cup competition, an annual South African rugby union competition organised by the South African Rugby Union. It was the 79th edition of the competition and was contested betw ...

season.

Canon Eagles

Bernardo joined

Canon Eagles The Yokohama Canon Eagles is a Japanese rugby union team founded in 1981 that competes in the Japan Rugby League One and is owned by Canon. The team was previously based in Machida, Tokyo, Japan. According to the official website, it was founded ...

prior to the

2018–19 Top League The 2018–19 Top League was the 16th season of Japan's top-tier domestic rugby union competition, the Top League. Competition rules The sixteen Top League teams were divided into two conferences for the #First Stage, first stage of the competit ...

season.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bernardo, Rynier South African rugby union players Eastern Province Elephants players Southern Kings players Rugby union players from Pretoria Living people 1991 births Ospreys (rugby union) players Scarlets players Free State Cheetahs players Cheetahs (rugby union) players Yokohama Canon Eagles players Rugby union locks