Bok bruiser off to France?
10/11/2024 01:00 AM
French Top 14 leaders Bordeaux Begles are reported to be in talks with a Springbok enforcer after making his signature a “priority”.
According to a report by RugbyPass, Bordeaux have prioritised the signing of a new No 8 a priority and have Sale Sharks and Springbok loose forward Dan du Preez at the top of their list.
Bordeaux are looking for a replacement for Tevita Tatafu, the Tongan-born Japanese international, who will head back to Japan's League One at the end of this season.
Tatafu, 28, has been a crucial figure for Bordeaux since arriving in 2023, scoring seven tries in 30 appearances. Despite being overlooked for Japan's Rugby World Cup squad, he returned to the national fold for Eddie Jones's team during the recent summer tests.
While Du Preez is contracted to Sale until the end of the 2025-26 season, RugbyPass reports that a move to France is increasingly likely, after the Top 14 pace-setters sounded him out.
Durban-born Du Preez, now 29, joined Sale Sharks in 2019 alongside his twin brother Jean-Luc, both of whom made the switch from the Sharks in Durban. They joined their older brother Rob at the Manchester-based club, forming a family trio in Sale's pack.
The former Sharks enforcer has been inching closer to his 100th cap for Sale and is set to return to action this weekend against Steve Diamond's Newcastle Falcons after a long injury layoff that has kept him out since January.
Photo: Sydney Seshibedi/Gallo Images
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