Departure of Sharks centre imminent

NEWS: Sharks centre Rohan Janse van Rensburg is set to join France outfit Bordeaux.

The Sharks would not confirm the departure of centre Rohan Janse van Rensburg but the announcement of his departure is imminent.

French publication Sud Ouest reported that Bordeaux secured the signatures of the international centre several weeks ago.

It is reported that Janse van Rensburg is on the move again after spending just over a year with the Sharks in Durban, apparently on the verge of signing a three year deal with Bordeaux.

The 29-year-old, who has one Springbok cap, is in his second season playing in South Africa for the Sharks.

Neil Powell, the Director of Rugby at the Sharks, did not want to comment on rumours about Janse van Rensburg’s link with Bordeaux on Tuesday.

“We have not negotiated with players on contracts yet and Rohan [Janse van Rensburg] is contracted with us until the end of June,” Powell said.

Previously Janse van Rensburg had made 74 appearances for the Sale Sharks scoring 23 tries after starting his career in South Africa with the Lions.

In the early part of his time at the Durban-based Sharks there was a peak in his performance in the United Rugby Championship and statistics released by the competition organisers confirmed his growing influence.

After 15 rounds of the URC, nobody had beaten more defenders than the Sharks centre and the statistic was all the more telling given that the centre had missed much of the action because of suspension and injury.

However, Janse van Rensburg’s performance has dwindled since the arrival of new head coach, John Plumtree. This shift, coupled with an opportunity to reunite with his former assistant coach, Yannick Bru, presented a compelling case for the 29-year-old to make a move.

Van Rensburg has just one Test cap behind his name - against Wales in 2016 - and has been on the outside looking in because his chief rival for the No. 12 jersey is Damian de Allende and Andre Esterhuizen.