'I'm shocked and I can't believe it‚' says Mark Andrews after James Small's death

Former Springbok winger‚ James Small‚ one of South Africa's 1995 Rugby World Cup winners‚ has died.

Small‚ who represented the Springboks in 47 Tests between 1992 and 1997‚ was reported to have been a victim of a heart attack on Wednesday. He was 50.

Former the Sharks and Springbok team mate Mark Andrews‚ who played as a lock forward‚ said they were notified of Small's passing on their 1995 Rugby World Cup winners and the death came as a shock to him.

“We've got a very close Whatsapp group and we've been made aware of his passing about an hour ago.

"I spoke to him on his birthday and I had his Whatsapp profile open for some reason yesterday.

"He had changed his profile picture to one that had him‚ his son and his daughter‚” Andrews said.

“It's not nice. I'm shocked and I can't believe it. I've played rugby with him since I was 20 years old.

"He was 50 years old. It's unbelievable.”