Final swan song for Lions prop
CURRIE CUP SPOTLIGHT: After more than a decade and 200 first-class matches, Jacobus Petrus Adriaanse is ready to call time on his career.
When the Golden Lions travel to Bloemfontein on Saturday to tackle the Free State Cheetahs in the Final, it could be the last time he puts on his rugby boots for a serious match.
Born in Cape Town in July 1985, the 34-year-old prop is one of the most well-travelled players.
His career has seen him play for the Boland Cavaliers, Griquas, Golden Lions (domestic) and Lions (Super Rugby), Scarlets (the only team he has represented in more than 50 games during one stint), Montpellier, Southern Kings, Blue Bulls (domestic) and Bulls (Super Rugby).
His current stint with the Lions started in 2017.
If his two stints with the Golden Lions and Lions – 2011 & 2912, as well as the latest – are added together, he will have featured in close to 100 first-class games for the Ellis Park-based outfit.
Adriaanse tried to soft-pedal the significance of the occasion.
“It will most probably my last game,” he said, adding: “I am very excited.
“However, it is not about me, it is about the team.
“The weekend is a big game for us all.”
He said all the players must ensure they play their part in the process against a very powerful Cheetahs team.
“We all want to play in a final and it is a great privilege.
“It is a big game for us as a union.”
He will hope to make it a victorious swan song, having been a member of the Blue Bulls team which lost 16-36 to the Free State Cheetahs in Bloemfontein in the 2016 Final.
“We have given ourselves a chance by reaching the Final, but we must all contribute to the team effort.”
He described the Cheetahs as a ‘quality’ side with players that have been around the block.
“There is no illusion about the enormity of the task we face.”
@rugby365com
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