Wannenburg off to Ulster
The most experienced Vodacom Bulls player in Super Rugby, Pedrie Wannenburg, is leaving the union to join the Irish side Ulster.
Wannenburg has been released by the Blue Bulls Company and will start his new life in Belfast on July 1st.
Earlier in the season, Wannenburg became the first player from the franchise to reach 100 Super Games and finished the season on 113 games, of which 99 were consecutive. He won the Vodacom Super 14 trophy with the team three times, in 2007, 2009 and 2010.
He played 80 times for Vodacom Blue Bulls in Currie Cup rugby and won the Cup in 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2009 and in 2006 when the Blue Bulls shared the Cup with Free State.
Wannenburg also played in 20 tests for the Springboks.
“It was not an easy decision after almost a decade with the team and the Bulls family,” Wannenburg said of his move.
“I had a fantastic time and great experiences that I will never forget. But it is also a good time to move on. The Heineken Cup will be a new challenge and I am looking forward to that. I have heard many good things about Ulster as well and I am keen to contribute to them, as I still have a lot to offer,” Wannenburg said.
He will join fellow Springboks Johann Muller, Ruan Pienaar and B J Botha at Ulster. Wannenburg and Muller were at school together and played for the same Craven Week side.
The Bulls coach, Frans Ludeke, said Wannenburg will be remembered as one of the true ‘go to’ men of the side.
“The fact that Pedrie became our most capped player ever, could play 99 times consecutively and stayed loyal to the ‘team first’ principle, is testimony of his professionalism and loyalty. We understand why he feels he need new challenges and will always welcome back should the opportunity arise in the future,” Ludeke said.
“He will be remembered as one of the great Bulls players of his time.”
Commenting from Ulster Rugby, Director of Rugby Operations, David Humphreys said: “Ulster Rugby is looking forward to welcoming Pedrie, another world class South African forward and his partner to Belfast adding the final piece to the Ulster squad for the 2010-11 season.
“A lot has been spoken about the potential of this current Ulster squad and we are committed to signing the highest quality players who, like Pedrie, through their winning mentality have the ability to improve our performances on the pitch and take Ulster Rugby back to the highest level. I have no doubt Pedrie will be an enormous asset to Ulster. Ulster Rugby would like to thank the Blue Bulls for affording Pedrie the opportunity of continuing his rugby career, with Ulster.”
With thanks to SA Rugby.com
Sharks Sign Ross Skeate
The Sharks have signed lock Ross Skeate from France on a two year contract, effective 1 July, 2010 to 30 June 2012. The former Stormers and Toulon player will be a great asset to The Sharks.
After leaving Western Province and the Stormers two years ago, he joined Toulon who were on the brink of relegation. This season, they became European Cup finalists as well as qualifying for the Heineken Cup. He is acknowledged as a leader who assisted in the successful turnabout process for the club.
“My desire to play rugby in a team with a blend of international players, learn a new language and improve my forward play took me to France and I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at Toulon which I see as a success,” he explains.
“However, despite the team’s fortunes, I have a desire to return to South Africa and have chosen The Sharks as the right culture and team environment to continue my career. I believe my rugby philosophy and that of The Sharks is very similar and hence my decision to play in Durban. I look forward to it with eager anticipation.”
Ross boasts an impressive playing pedigree that includes age group representativity (SA Under 19 and Under 21), Western Province and Stormers (90 caps including captaincy), Emerging Springboks, UK Barbarians, Southern Kings vs British & Irish Lions and 45 caps for Toulon in the French Top 14 as well as eight caps in the European Cup.
“With the loss of one of our most senior players, Johann Muller, we have decided to add an experienced player in Ross Skeate,” explains coach John Plumtree. “He is considered a senior player at Toulon, as he was at Western Province, and that is something that stands him in good stead here at The Sharks because of his leadership qualities and experience. He’s a fantastic character.
“He is a mobile, versatile player, an intelligent person who brings all round lock-specific as well as forward athleticism to the game. We look forward to having him here and welcome him with open arms.”
With thanks to Sharksrugby.co.za
Blake And Gerrard Join Melbourne Rebels
The Melbourne Rebels have signed former Wallabies Rodney Blake and Mark Gerrard as they continue to bolster their squad ahead of next year’s Super 15.
Gerrard returns from Japanese club NTT Communications while Blake heads back to Australia following a stint with Bayonne in France.
Gerrard, 28, made his debut for the Waratahs in 2002, but moved to the Brumbies the following year where he made his name.
He has 79 Super rugby caps and 23 Test matches and is still the third highest scorer for the Canberra side.
The enormous Blake has been playing in France for the past two years after making his Super Rugby breakthrough for the Reds in 2005.
With thanks to SA Rugby.com
Jean De Villiers Returns To WP
WP Rugby on Tuesday announced that Springbok centre Jean de Villiers has returned to the Newlands fold and will be available for Currie Cup and Super 15 duty until the end of the 2011 season.
De Villiers spent the past year with the Irish outfit Munster but has decided to return to South Africa with the intention of securing a place in the Springbok squad for the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand.
The announcement was made by WP’s Senior Professional Coach Rassie Erasmus and MD of WP Rugby (Pty) Ltd Rob Wagner at the High Performance Centre in Bellville.
The other big scoop for the union was the acquisition of prop CJ van der Linde who has just returned to South Africa after a two-year stint in Ireland with Leinster. He will be playing for the Free State Cheetahs in the Currie Cup competition until the end of the year, and then takes up a one-year contact with Province for the 2011 season.
The Fiji-born wing Sireli Naqelevuki has parted ways with Newlands after his contract came to an end. He has returned to Fiji and has been named in his country’s national team to play Japan over the weekend. He produced some excellent performances during the Super 14 season and some European clubs have shown interest in him.
Flyhalf Peter Grant will not be around for the Currie Cup season as he has been given leave to play in Japan. Despite several excellent performances for the Stormers this year, Grant has not found favour with Springbok coach Peter de Villiers and was overlooked for recent Springbok squads.
Grant will, however, return to Cape Town for the Super 15 season.
With thanks to SA Rugby.com
Cooper Starts At Flyhalf For Wallabies
Australia coach Robbie Deans will hand Super 14 player-of-the-year Quade Cooper his first international start at flyhalf for Saturday’s Test against Fiji in Canberra.
The Wallabies regular stand-off Matt Giteau switches to inside centre, the position Cooper operated from during last November’s European tour.
Giteau and Cooper’s switch is one of a number of positional changes made by Deans, who is experimenting with his line-up ahead of two matches against England and one against Ireland.
Fullback Adam Ashley-Cooper switches to the wing in order to accommodate Kurtley Beale, and Digby Ioane also moves to the flank to allow NSW Waratah Rob Horne to make his debut at outside centre.
“This is the group we’ve opted to go with first up, a number of the combinations are familiar but the selection template is always a living document,” Deans said on Tuesday.
Cooper’s inclusion comes six months after he was arrested for an alleged break-in at the Surfers Paradise resort, which led to him being ordered by the Australian Rugby Union (ARU) to undergo counselling before being considered for reselection.
The New Zealand-born back has been in sensational form since and his Queensland Red’s side narrowly missed out on a place in the Super 14 semi-finals for the first time since 2001.
With thanks to timesonline.co.za
Loading ...
.PNG){kind=icon}
