Former skipper Strauss calls time at Bulls
FORMER South Africa hooker Adriaan Strauss will retire from all forms of professional rugby at the end of the 2018 Super Rugby season.
Bulls No.2 Strauss announced his retirement from Test rugby last year, and followed that with a short sabbatical to recharge his batteries in the latter part of the year.
He came back strong and revived, and reminded the world just why he has been rated so highly over his career, as he made a huge impact on the Bulls’ 2018 Super Rugby season.
The 32-year-old, below, captained the Bulls in 2016 and 2017, and was also appointed as the Springbok captain in 2016, becoming the 56th captain of the national team.
Strauss said: “It hasn’t been an easy decision, but one that I’ve been thinking about for a while now. I have been blessed to play the game I love, with and against some amazing people, all while building some great friendships.”
Meanwhile, the Crusaders and Tasman Makos are set to benefit from Jordan Taufua’s decision to back out of a contract with a Japanese club.
The hard-hitting loose forward, included in the All Blacks squad to play France earlier this month but sidelined with injury, has been granted a release from the Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars club before playing a game for them.
■ Sonny Bill Williams is in doubt for the opening fixture of the Rugby Championship as he recovers from the shoulder injury he collected in the All Blacks’ third Test against France.
He made a surprise return from a knee injury to appear in that third Test, where he lasted 60 minutes before going down again with the shoulder injury.