SITTING IN THE rather unique setting of the Salle Jeanne d’Arc village hall in Presles, a sleepy spot 40 minutes train ride north of Paris, Jean Kleyn is reflecting on what has been a whirlwind time in his life.
With rows of red seats facing a stage in the narrow room, it doesn’t quite speak of the glamour of the World Cup, but it’s a handy place to meet media given that it’s only a quick spin down the road from the Springboks’ team hotel in the week of the final.
Kitted out in Springboks gear and with sandals on his feet, Kleyn cuts a relaxed, contended figure. He seems very happy with where life has brought him so unexpectedly since Rassie Erasmus called him out of the blue a few months ago.
Back then, Kleyn was still getting questions about whether he hoped to play for Ireland again, having won five caps in 2019. He was at ease with being out of the picture under Andy Farrell, focusing instead on delivering strong performances with Munster.
But when Rassie rang and asked if Kleyn was interested in being called up by the Springboks, it was an offer he couldn’t refuse. World Rugby’s change in eligibility laws meant he was available after a three-year standdown from Irish duty.
Playing for his native country was a no-brainer and having debuted in the Rugby Championship in July, Kleyn has featured twice so far in the World Cup. Now he’s part of a set-up preparing for a World Cup final. If the Boks opt for a 6/2 bench split, Kleyn could feature against New Zealand.
“I think I’ve caught myself thinking about it probably too often,” says Kleyn of his journey.
“It’s a strange one because if you asked me six months ago if I had at all thought that I had any chance of being here at a World Cup final and playing for the Springboks, I would have told you, ‘You’re absolutely insane’.
“So for me, I’ll probably wake up when it’s all said and done and think, ‘Was that a dream or did that actually happen?’ It was outside of the realms of thinking.
“Yeah, so it’s been a fantastic journey for me. It’s been brilliant to have been part of the squad. To be honest, it’s one of the best groups of players that I’ve ever had the pleasure of playing with, working with, and knowing.
“From players to staff to the medical team to the coaches, they’re all great people and they put in the hard work and they’re passionate about the game and passionate about South Africa. It’s been an absolute pleasure being a part of it.”
Kleyn started the pool win over Romania and then had a huge occasion as he came off the bench for the Springboks against Ireland the following weekend.
While Farrell’s side won that battle, Ireland lock Tadhg Beirne mentioned post-match that Munster team-mate Kleyn had caught him with a hefty ruck clearout at one stage.
“You always try and get the lads you know,” says Kleyn with a smile. “It’s just one of those things.
“If you know someone a little bit better, you always go a little bit out of your way just to see if you can get one over on them but no, I think me and RG [Snyman] got a good clearout on Tadhg once but it was a good game. I really enjoyed it.
“Obviously it was a pity for us the result didn’t go our way but here we are, we still remain, and at the end of the day no one really looks back and says, ‘Oh well, you lost a pool game. They’ll look at if you win the World Cup.
“We were obviously disappointed with the result back then but happy with where we are now. But yeah, it was a fantastic game to be a part of. I enjoyed every minute.”
Kleyn has been blown away by the support he’s getting from back in Munster.
The southern province’s fans have come to love him. Kleyn arrived from South Africa as a fairly raw second row back in 2016 but has developed into a consistent force in the red jersey, with his excellent performances central to their drive to a URC title last season.
He has made a true home in Ireland, marrying Galway girl Aisiling. The couple finished building their home in Limerick at the end of 2022 and their first child, Eli Noah, was born in Ireland in February.
Kleyn’s brother, Johan, lives in Dublin, having moved from the Cayman Islands a few years after Jean. Their parents even moved from South Africa to the UK in order to be closer to their sons.
So the connection with Munster is strong and it’s no surprise that their fans have been getting firmly behind him.
“I’ve been absolutely inundated with messages from Munster supporters,” says Kleyn.
“Obviously, only after Ireland fell out, then they really came after us and said, ‘You’re our second team now, guys.’ The support is really well felt and really heartfelt as well from a lot of Munster fans.
“I think it made it a lot easier for me because I thought there would be… to be honest, I thought it would be quite a negative reaction when I played for the Springboks from, I suppose, my history with Irish media.
“I figured there would be a few negative articles but it was really positive and I was really happy about that. It made it a lot easier for me.”
This brilliant time in Kleyn’s life has been made all the more special by his family being part of it.
Like Farrell’s Ireland, the Springboks welcome their players’ families into the squad environment during competition, which means Kleyn has had his wife and son in France for the past month.
In fact, Aisling even made it onto the TV coverage of last weekend’s semi-final win over England when she was shown in the crowd at Stade de France.
“Yeah, she was very embarrassed because she has this thing where whenever she sees herself on TV, she ducks down,” says Kleyn with a laugh.
“Actually, the exact same thing happened to her at the URC final. She ended up becoming a meme there: ‘You tell your boss you’re at work or you’re sick but you go the URC final’ or something like that.
“So that’s now two play-offs in a row where she’s been caught on the big screen. She’s been with us since the Tonga game so it’s been fantastic having my family with me.”
Aisling will be there in Paris this weekend too as Kleyn hopes to get a World Cup winner’s medal to bring back to Munster.