Excitement grows as stars extend stay with Vodacom Bulls

May 5 • General News • 1141 Views • Comments Off on Excitement grows as stars extend stay with Vodacom Bulls

The Blue Bulls Company (Pty) Ltd confirmed on Friday that a handful of stars in the squad extended their stay with the team by signing extensions to their current contracts. Former Junior Springbok captain, Hanro Liebenberg and fellow Junior Boks, Ivan van Zyl, Travis Ismaiel and Dries Swanepoel all signed two-year extensions, High-Performance Manager at the BBC, Xander Janse van Rensburg, confirmed.

This follows the news earlier in the week that Lood de Jager extended his stay in Pretoria and Boom Prinsloo joined the squad from the Toyota Cheetahs at the beginning of the month.

“The extensions of these squad members show that high-quality players still want to continue their career and fulfil their dreams at the Vodacom Bulls,” Janse van Rensburg said.

“They are amongst the best in their positions in the country and it is a huge vote of confidence in our management and structures that they see their future with us. Their decision to extend their careers with us is also driven by a desire to play for South Africa in future and it is great that they see the Vodacom Bulls as the vehicle to take them there.”

Janse van Rensburg also announced another Blitzbok signing after Prinsloo joined this month.

Current Blitzboks performer, Tim Agaba, will be joining the Pretoria outfit in June. The Olympic bronze medallist in Rugby Sevens will still play with the Blitzboks in the last two tournaments of the current HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series (in Paris and London) before moving north to join his new teammates in Pretoria.

Agaba also represented SA Students, EP Kings and NMMU Madibaz earlier in his career, before taking up a national sevens contract.

Janse van Rensburg also confirmed that flyhalf Tian Schoeman will be leaving for French club Bordeaux at the end of the season. “We are sad to see Tian go as he has been a wonderful servant to the Vodacom Bulls and Vodacom Blue Bulls, but we understand his career choice. He was always going to be an understudy here and now gets the opportunity to go to a club where he can start and become their pivot. We wish him well and believe he will make a success over there as well. That said, he still has some pretty important matches to play for us as well!”

Schoeman also thanked the Vodacom Bulls from his side. “I feel honoured for the awesome opportunities I had with the team so far. I made a career decision and will now move to France where I hope to eventually qualify to play for them. I am only 26 and still have ambitions, but I don’t think it will be fulfilled here. That said, I am extremely grateful for all the opportunities I have playing rugby in South Africa, something I will always treasure.”