Player Movement was detailed at a media conference today at the High Performance Centre in Bellville, Senior Professional Coach Rassie Erasmus and MD of WP Rugby (Pty) Ltd Rob Wagner, confirmed player movements.
Western Province flyhalf Peter Grant will miss the Currie Cup after taking the option in his contract to move to Japan on a loan spell for the remainder of 2010.
Grant is just one in a number of player movements in and out of the Cape Town outfit, as senior professional coach Rassie Erasmus looks to get all his ducks in a row ahead of the Currie Cup campaign.
Here is a short breakdown of all the player movements in and out of Western Province:
Joining WP Rugby
Jean de Villiers rejoins WP Rugby for the balance of the 2010 season, and the 2011 season.
CJ van der Linde will join WP Rugby after the completion of the 2010 Absa Currie Cup and will be under contract for the 2011 season.
Leaving
Sireli Naqelevuki, whose contract has ended, is pursuing contracts in Europe.
Leave of absence / loan
Peter Grant has been afforded the right to play in Japan for the balance of the 2010 season. He will return to WP at the end of January 2011 and will be eligible to play Super 15 Rugby for the Stormers.
Pending
Joe Pietersen, who is contracted to WP until 31 October 2010 has requested an early release to play in France. Pietersen will be released subject to transfer terms being agreed to.
After being overlooked by Peter de Villiers for Springbok selection once again, Peter Grant will play in Japan in a loan move the rest of the year, before returning in January to join up with the Stormers.
Erasmus said that he believes the move will be good for the flyhalf, as the league is less physical and not as demanding as the Currie Cup, which will offer him the chance to revitalise and energise ahead of the Super 15.
The returning springbok duo of De Villiers and Van der Linde add considerable depth and experience to the squad that will want to go one better in next year’s Super 15.
“We [the Stormers] were eight points away from winning the Super 14 this year. We not as good as the Bulls yet – they’re the benchmark and we want to try and get up there,” Erasmus said.
Naqelevuki’s move come after the big wing dropped in the pecking order thanks to an awful error against the Sharks, but Erasmus said the Fijian had far more good moments than bad ones.
“Sireli really wants to play for Fiji in the World Cup and join up with the national team this year,” the coach explained when asked why he was leaving before the Currie Cup when Bryan Habana and Gio Aplon are unlikely to be available.
The coach is pleased with the youth that is coming through as he continues to get all the structures in place to ensure there is depth in every position ahead of the demanding new format in the Super 15.
“These last few years we’ve create depth, but we are a little thin in the backline with all the Springboks out,” he said.
With eight Springboks unavailable and the additional absence of Grant, Pietersen and Naqelevuki, the Currie Cup offers the opportunity for Province to blood their youngsters.
Conrad Hoffman is one of the talented young guns expected to feature in the Currie Cup, and he wants to focus on playing at scrumhalf to avoid being considered a utility back.
“He has made up his mind now and has decided to give it a full go,” Erasmus said.
“He doesn’t want to make the same mistake as some other players and be a jack of all trades and a master of none.”
There is also going to be a return to action for the highly rated Nick Koster, who has also decided his preferred position and wants to return to the back of the scrum at No.8. The experiment of playing the extremely talented youngster at wing appears to be over.
“His big dream was to play at 13, but we agreed to start him out on the wing,” Erasmus explained.
“Now he wants to play at No.8, which is wonderful and we need extra loose forwards anyway.”
Swak!
WP will have to take out their cheque book. Expect the Freestate to be plundered again.
I mfeel for Juan De Jongh, he will now play 2nd fiddle to JDV. Perhaps he will also move to the Lions.
Damn, in the whole WP Team, the whole front row, one lock (Fondse), No 8 (Vermeulen) and No 9 (Duvenage) is all that remains of the run-on Stormers side…
So, complete backline change and the loosies are left a bit bare…
But then again, almost the same or even worse at the Bulls… loosehead gone (Gurthro), 4 frontline locks (Danie, Flip, Bakkies & Victor), 2 loosies (Dewald & Spies), scrumhalf (Fourie du Preez injured), flyhalf (Morne), inside centre (Wynand), left wing (Hougaard injured) and fullback Zane………. all not available.
So what will the Bulls look like in the Currie Cup??
Kirsten (1), Gary Botha (2), Werner Kruger (3) – Not a bad front row at all
Juandre Kruger (4), Wilhelm Steenkamp (5) – Not bad at all but not the same as our prime locks
Stegmann (6), Pedrie (7), Van Velze ( 8 ) – Not bad… not bad at all
Snyman (9) – Not bad at all
Jacques-Louis Potgieter (10) – Not bad at all
Deon Helberg of Sampie Mastriet of Clayton Blommetjies (11) – personally I would opt for Sampie Mastriet, great talent
Stephan Dippenaar (12) – Eishhh, compared to Wynand he pales there…. oi
Jaco Pretorius (13) – No problem, not brilliant but steady
Gerhard van den Heever (14) – Great
Jaco van der Westhuyzen (15) – Solid enough
Not too bad, I guess, but teams who lose less players, like the Sharks and Cheetahs are going to be bloody difficult customers with this team….. eishhhhhhhh
@2…ja, kry vir jou 🙂
Sharks out of the Currie Cup:
Bismarck, John Smit, Jannie Dup
Hargreaves
Kanko
Ruan Pienaar
Waylon Murray (now a Lion)
JP Pietersen
Argggggggg what the hell, the Blue Bulls can still beat what’s left of the Sharkies…
OK, 6 pack of Windhoeks we end higher in the CC?
I see I am on top of Blue Bird now, which is not too unpleasant a thought!
5@ 4man:
Flok, hoeveel Windhoeks skuld ek nou al… of is ons quits?
Ek dink ek skuld jou ses, van die laaste jaar se rugby, maar in elk geval ons drink hulle saam…ek sal seker kom September maand. So ons is aan vir die CC 😉
8@ 4man:
OK… 6 Windhoeks / Sletsappe….
Hehehe
I must keep tabs of all my bets around…. I know I have 2 bottles of Roodeberg on the line as well against Asbakkie and someone else… for the soccer shit….
8@ 4man:
BonzaiGBS flies here to me on Friday, schools close tomorrow, for nearly 6 weeks… damn I miss the little shit!
Frik Kirsten is a tight head. I am not sure if Jaco Engels is still in the picture, but the next loose head is Dean Greyling.
The surprise just might be Juandre Kruger at blindside.
11@ dWeePer:
There’s Bees Roux as well for tighthead.. and yes, I think Jaco Engels will be available as well, he played Vodacom Cup till the end for the Blue Bulls.
Personally I would play Juandre at lock, the Bulls cupboard is not so bare on the loosie department, Van Velze is good at No 7 or No 8…. I don’t rate Mabeta much at lock
@ 4man:
Excuse me!! 😳
Well we will see about that!! 😆
@ GBS Sorry I was outside sanding the bench, it will be lekker for you to see the laaitie again, he must be uge now. Jason was with us on Saturday, it was nice. We always used to go to RJ’s and have a chow and then go to Kings Park him and me, so he loves going to the rugby with me I think it is one of his formative memories, so he really enjoys it.
@14….why, do you want to be on top, no problem, much better that way!
its “All creatures great and small” on the glass arsehole now, so me and the dogs are going to watch!
4man
You are cracking me up !!!
Blue Bird
You sounded rather speechless 😉
18@ Blouste:
It seems that 4man is feeling cocky…. hehehe
Mag dit julle geweldig gaan, ek gaan nou eers bietjie fokkof!
gbs
Jy weet dan 😉
@ Blouste:
Blouste, it takes a bit to make me speechless……….
4man has succeeded….. 😯
Well he is a Sharks supporter!! 🙂
@ Blue Bird:
Yes rather stick to the Bulls…
After all , they’ve got the real horns… 😉
Hi All
Please introduce me to Blue Bird. I am blogging so few and far between that I lose track!
NAKALAVUKI IS UIT!!!!
Nee, ek dink als sal goed gaan by die WP, because why, dit sal die ouens wat altyd tweede viool speel kans gee om bietjie in die span te kom… ouens soos Lionel Cronje (hoplik bewys hy homself en WDW beweeg uit) Hoffman (tweede scrummie, want Ricky is ALWEER by die Bokke, Pieter Louw en Koster, en dan JONG ouens soos Whitehead en Engelbreacht, wat die ervaring nodig het.
My WP span
Jantjies (30)
Liam bax (22) – dalk iemand anders.
De Jong (22)
Tim Whitehead (22)
JJ Engelbrecht (21)
Lionel Cronje (21)
Duvenhage (22)
Vermeulen
Koster
P.Louw
Van Zyl
Fondse
Harris
Liebenberg
Blaauw
Jantjies gaan nie meer vir lank speel nie. Fourie, De Villiers en Habana se kontrakte maak einde volgende jaar klaar, Ricky se form drop vinniger as die burgers wat hy eet. Grant sal ook nie meer vir te lank bly nie, Willie Walie is op sy laastes. Ander manne soos Welsh en Juries is self te oud. En dan het jy gevalle soos Des Fountain en Newman, wat net nooit in die mix sal bly nie (effe hartseer, want albei wys moerse potensiaal).
WP moet nou al die agterlyn laat begin gel en die ouens laat leer by die ouer hande soos Jean, Bryan, Jantjies en Jaques.
Al hierdie ouens het JARE se talent, en spel nou al lank in die WP.
If not, why not.
@ Greenpoint-Gunner:
Hemel, hierdie span gaan klippe kou in die CC, ek sien alweer hoe my “pel van Bloemies” elke Sondag vir my sms as hulle weer verloor het…
@ Alibaba
Dalk… maar buiten vir Koster (wat btw brilliant is) is dit pretty much dieselfde pak voorspelers.
DAN het drie van die spelers hierdie jaar in meeste van die games gespeel, Jantjies was laas jaar loshande een van die Stormers se beste spelers (sou defnitief vanjaar weer gespeel het as hy nie beseepr was nie).
So die enigste “groenes” wat oorbly is Cronje, Enelbrecht en Bax, en soos ek se… talent. Baie het aan die begin van vanjaar gese Lionel moet alle games begin. Laas jaar het Engelbrecht met so een of twee games uitgehelp, en hy gaan nog donners goed wees. Bax self het al S14 gespeel, maar eks nie so seker oor hom nie.
In elk geval, dit sal dalk gebeur day Aplon nie in die 3N speel nie, en dat JP weer daar oorneem. Dan is Willie Walie ook nog daar as Lionel vou, en ek reken F.Louw gaan ook meer in die CC speel as in die 3N, as mens in ag neem Juan Smit is ook nog daar iewers.
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