Cheetahs lose Strauss tug-of-war
The Cheetahs have lost the battle to retain the services of Springbok hooker Adriaan Strauss, who has reportedly already signed with the Bulls.
The Cheetahs, in a brief statement, confirmed on Friday that Strauss will not renewed his contract with the Bloemfontein0-based outfit – although they stopped short of confirming his destination.
However, repeated reports in recent weeks claimed he has singed with the Bulls, even after Strauss publicly stated that he has not made a firm decision.
That decision has now been made.
"Despite every effort, the Free State Cheetahs (Pty) Ltd. has regretfully been unable to come to terms with Adriaan Strauss on the renewal of his contract," said the Board of Directors of the FS Cheetahs in a statement.
"Initial negotiations over financial terms were met.
"However, other factors precluded the Free State Cheetahs from coming to an agreement with the player.
"We would like to acknowledge his tremendous service to the Free State Cheetahs and wish him the very best in his future endeavours."
It is now certain he will return to Pretoria, where he played for a few years, before he moved to Bloemfontein to become a Springbok.
The length of his stay in Pretoria is yet to be confirmed.
Strauss, 28, was schooled at Grey College in Bloemfontein, but started his professional career at the Bulls, where he played eight Super Rugby matches.
Strauss returned to Free State in 2007 and has made 95 Super Rugby appearances to date.
Strauss also has 34 Test caps for the Springboks and has been vice-captain on a number of occasions.
* Meanwhile the Cheetahs have appear to have filled the void at prop, following the departure of Trevor Nyakane to the Bulls.
The Cheetahs have snapped up Leopards loosehead Bennie Uys.
Uys, 26, came through the ranks of the Leopards, playing at Under-18 and Under-21 level from 2007 to 2009. He made his Currie Cup debut for the Leopards in 2010 against the Blue Bulls and played for the next three seasons for the Potchefstroom-based side. In 2013, Uys joined the Southern Kings' training group prior to the Super Rugby season, but was later released.
