The Vodacom Bulls have confirmed that lock forward Ruan Nortje has accepted an offer to join an overseas club in Japan at the conclusion of the current season, bringing a close to an extraordinary chapter at Loftus Versfeld.
The Vodacom Bulls received some welcome news amidst their tumultuous season as Rugby World Cup-winning Springboks Canan Moodie and Kurt-Lee Arendse returned to the side following a stint on the sidelines due to concussion protocols.
Vodacom Bulls head coach Johan Ackermann has moved to clarify recent media reports and social media speculation regarding his request to involve Springbok coaches in supporting the team.
Vodacom Bulls’ struggle has seen Springbok assistant coaches Felix Jones and Jerry Flannery, SA Rugby Mobi-Unit coach Duane Vermeulen, and Head of Athletic Performance Andy Edwards roped in to assist.
Kurt-Lee Arendse made a triumphant return to the Springboks lineup against Japan following an injury-riddled period that kept him sidelined since 16 August 2025.
For the past week, the big controversy in world rugby has been the incident between Vodacom Bulls and Springbok player Jan-Hendrik Wessels and Josh Murphy of Connacht. During the incident, Murphy accused Wessels of grabbing and manipulating his genitals during a breakdown. No sanction was issued against Wessels by the match officials during the match
Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry, an alternating quadrennial tour between South Africa and New Zealand, was confirmed on Thursday, marking a defining new chapter for the intense rivalry between the sport’s most successful and storied nations.
Springbok prop Wilco Louw has his sights set firmly on trying to do everything he can to assist the Boks earn scrum dominance in their Rugby Championship clash against the Pumas in Durban on Saturday, and similarly to his teammates, he was gearing up for a battle of attrition.
Springbok fullback Willie le Roux joined the national squad in Durban on Sunday. He will train with the team until Wednesday as they prepare to face Argentina in their penultimate Castle Lager Rugby Championship match at Hollywoodbets Kings Park on Saturday.