It was speculated here on rugby-talk on Saturday that South African centre Andries Strauss was going to sign up with Edinburgh Rugby. The news was confirmed on Sunday by the club. Strauss has signed up for two and a half seasons, subject to passing the customary medical tests.

The addition of a top quality player such as Andries Strauss to the domestic game in Scotland is perhaps a good thing. Having long advocated the signing of top quality external players one has always wanted this to be done in balance, possibly along the lines of the old saying “all good things in moderation”. However, it is getting concerning that Alan Solomons Edinburgh may have ventured onto the wrong side of that balance of having quality external players to bring the level of the club up and who local players can learn from and having too many external players in the squad taking up places of local players and in so doing stunting their development. The knock on effect of this certainly has to be felt eventually by the national team.

It is not all negative though as some of Edinburgh’s signings have arguably added to the depth of Scottish rugby. They have brought players  from abroad into the local game who through ancestral connections are immediately available for Scott Johnson to add to his national squad. One thinks of the likes of lock Ollie Atkins who came over from Australia whose father was born in Scotland and scrumhalf Grayson Hart who joined from New Zealand but has a Scottish granny. Although, the problem is what message does this send to Scottish youngsters who have steadily made their way through the various levels in the country.

Ahead of the aborted New Years day 1872 Cup game between Glasgow Warriors and Edinburgh one noticed the relatively high amount of players at the clubs that were from elsewhere. As far as my knowledge goes Glasgow Warriors had 19 players in their match day squad of 23 who are qualified, at the moment, to play for Scotland, whereas Edinburgh only had 14. If one glances at the rest of Edinburgh’s extended squad one sees two other centres who are there who will not be able to play for the national team; All Black Ben Atiga and Argentina’s Joaquin Dominguez. Glasgow Warriors recruited Dominquez fellow countryman and centre Gabriel Ascarate as well this season.

Perhaps the model in Ireland rugby of in theory only allowing one non national qualified player in each position across all their Provinces has merits and in time may be the one Scottish rugby would be well advised to adopt. This would mean two centres being allowed between Glasgow Warriors and Edinburgh, whereas there are now at least four plying their trade who will not be available for Scotland.

Nevertheless, the arrival of Strauss was proudly announced as follows by edinburghrugby:

Edinburgh Rugby have up-weighted the strength and depth of the club’s midfield with the signing of experienced Super Rugby centre Andries Strauss until the summer of 2016.

The 29-year-old South African has made 56 appearances in the southern hemisphere’s top tier, having plied his trade for the Cheetahs, Sharks and, latterly, for Edinburgh Rugby head coach Alan Solomons as stand-in captain at the Southern Kings.

The two-time Currie Cup winner and Super Rugby semi-finalist has also represented South Africa in the World Sevens Series – featuring in the inaugural Edinburgh tournament in 2007 – and for the Springboks against the Barbarians in 2010 at Twickenham [pictured right training as part of the Springboks 2010 touring squad].

Brother to Leinster and Ireland hooker Richardt Strauss, Andries arrived in the city on Friday morning and, subject to medical examination, will begin training with the squad tomorrow (Monday 6 January), at the start of a new chapter in an already impressive career.

“I’m very excited to be here,” said Strauss.

“I said during the world sevens series that, if there was a city in the UK that I’d like to play rugby in, then it’d be Edinburgh, so I’m very happy to get this chance in one of the best cities in the world.

“I’ve spoken a lot to my brother Richardt [Strauss] about the strength of the RaboDirect PRO12 and Heineken Cup and how they compare to Super Rugby so it’s a massive opportunity for me to experience a different side of the rugby world.”

“Hopefully my experience in the southern hemisphere will benefit me when playing here. This is a new team set-up so my first focus is to put in a lot of hard work and not focus on anything else but that.”

“My first goal is to become part of a side which has been quite successful this year, and by that I mean settle in to the group and get to know the guys as quickly as possible. I’m looking forward to getting on to the pitch and training again, putting the boots back on and getting the body into a couple of contact situations.”

“Once I’ve done that I’ll refocus my goals in terms of what I want to achieve with this team.”

Career so far

A product of the prestigious rugby school Grey College in Bloemfontein, Strauss represented the Springboks through the age-grades and joined the Free State under-20 side in 2003.

He was included in the Cheetahs’ senior squad for the 2004 Vodacom Cup competition, before moving to Durban to join the Sharks the following year.

He represented the province at all levels, making more than 100 appearances in four years across Super Rugby (Sharks), Currie Cup (Natal Sharks) and Vodacom Cup (Natal Wildebeest) competitions.

He then spent two seasons with the Cheetahs alongside Edinburgh Rugby forwards Willem Nel and Izak van der Westhuizen before securing a move to the Kings, where he started thirteen of their sixteen matches, most of which as captain, in Solomons’ then Super Rugby side.

Edinburgh Rugby head coach Alan Solomons welcomed the signing, citing both the short and long term benefits of the new recruit.

He said: “This is very good news for Edinburgh Rugby.”

“Andries is a very mature player with a lot of Super Rugby and Currie Cup premier division experience. He did a fantastic job as captain for the Kings.”

“He’s a big boy, is genetically strong and his conditioning is superb. He’s a natural athlete in that sense and will make a valuable contribution to Edinburgh Rugby, both in terms of playing and leadership. It’s fantastic that he joins us now because he is immediately available for this season and will be totally au-fait with everything for when the new season starts, which makes a huge difference.”

“We want to go into next season, particularly with a guy like that, being completely comfortable and established.”

Andries Jacobus Strauss (29)
Born: 5 March 1984 in Pretoria.
Height: 1.86m (6’1”),
Weight: 97kg (15st 4lb).
Previous clubs: Cheetahs, Sharks, Kings.
International honours: South Africa Schools, South Africa U19, U21, SA Sevens, South Africa (v Barbarians, 2010).