“Naka Drotské saved my children’s lives.”

That is what Tinus Drotské, brother of the former Springbok rugby player, told Naka’s wife, Marzanne, after he was shot three times during a home invasion on Thursday night in Pretoria.

Naka, fellow former Springbok teammate Os du Randt and Tinus, with Tinus's three children, were together when four men barged into the house at 9.15pm.

“Naka jumped up and stormed them, and then they shot him three times, and then they luckily fled. The children, no-one else was harmed,” said Tinus.

Naka, who played numerous Tests for the Springboks and was part of the team that won the 1995 Rugby World Cup, was shot in the right side of the chest, stomach and right arm.