CONFIRMED: Bok star puts pen to paper with new team
TRANSFER NEWS: Springbok flank Pieter-Steph du Toit has signed with Japan’s Toyota Verblitz as he attempts to recover from a shoulder injury, the team said Monday.
The Aichi-based club also acquired All Black Patrick Tuipulotu for the season from January to May.
Du Toit, the 2019 World Rugby Player of the Year, recently underwent surgery for a shoulder injury.
He is now in a race against the clock to be fit for Tests in Wales, Scotland and England in November.
“It is a privilege to be part of [the team] and I hope to justify the faith put in me by giving my very best on and off the field,” du Toit said in a statement.
Tuipulotu will also join the Japanese team headed by former New Zealand coach Steve Hansen.
“I am very happy to be joining Toyota Verblitz, and hope I can add value and assist Toyota in their goal of being the best club in Japan,” he said.
“It will be pleasing to see some familiar faces at the club… I am looking forward to my time in Japan and I am very grateful for this opportunity,” Tuipulotu added.
📣2021年度新入団選手のお知らせ
New signing for the up coming 2021-2022 season.ピーターステフ・ドュトイ
Pieter Steph du Toit (LO/FL)パトリック・トゥイプロトウ
Patrick Tuipulotu (LO)詳しくは↓https://t.co/VppHghF6LZ pic.twitter.com/nVgAOjNluN
— トヨタヴェルブリッツ TOYOTA VERBLITZ (@toyotaverblitz) September 6, 2021
