Loftus recruitment goes into overdrive
TRANSFER NEWS: Jake White’s recruitment in Pretoria has gone into overdrive.
Barely hours after revealing they had lured a player away from Cape Town, the Bulls announced the return of Travis Ismaiel.
Ismaiel returns to Pretoria after a short stint with Harlequins in the English Premiership.
He needs no introduction to the Bulls faithful, as he established himself as the incumbent left wing for several seasons before his move abroad.
A Bulls man through and through, Ismaiel has represented the franchise at every level – from Under-19 to Super Rugby, with the 27-year-old former Hoërskool Tygerberg scholar earning 39 Super Rugby caps and scoring 10 tries.
Ismaiel continued to shine at Loftus Versfeld, which saw him make his Springbok debut in 2018 against Wales in Washington DC, after turning out for South Africa A against the English Saxons in 2016.
His national duty had thus come full circle, as he assisted the Junior Springboks to glory in 2012 – when they won the World Rugby Under-20 Championship in Cape Town.
The Bulls’ Director of Rugby, White, stated that it bodes well for the franchise that players of calibre such as Travis can see value in re-joining the team, and is looking forward to working with him when rugby returns.
“Travis is a quality player that I believe has unfinished business in Super Rugby and beyond, so it is great to see him returning to Loftus Versfeld,”White said.
“He has a knack for finding the try line and has scored some scintillating tries for us in the past so I’m looking forward to working alongside him.”
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