Faf on the cusp of signing for Hurricanes

Springbok scrumhalf Faf de Klerk is on the verge of leaving Sale Sharks and signing a deal with Johan Ackermann’s Red Hurricanes team in Japan, according to reports in England.

According to the Telegraph, De Klerk is expected to accept an offer worth £900 000 (about R18.5-million) a year from the Red Hurricanes this week. The 30-year-old World Cup winner is one of Sale’s marquee players. However, the Manchester-based club reportedly cannot match what De Klerk has been offered.

This year, the Premiership salary cap will also be reduced from £6.4-million to £5-million.

The Red Hurricanes are coached by former Lions boss Ackermann, who gave De Klerk his big break at the Lions back in 2014. The two helped the Lions progress to the 2016 and 2017 Super Rugby finals. De Klerk will also be reunited with former Lions teammate Elton Jantjies.

He is not expected to be the only Bok leaving Sale Sharks, with teammate Lood de Jager also linked with a move back to South Africa for family reasons, with the Stormers a potential destination.