STEVEN KITSHOFF

The Springbok hopes to bow out on a high at Stormers before joining Ulster

- Dylan Jack

STEVEN KITSHOFF’S  sights are again set on leading Stormers to glory in the URC before defending the Springboks’ World Cup title. The URC final is on 27 May, a match the Test loosehead hopes will celebrate the end of his 12-year Stormers career. After which his eyes will be focused on helping the Boks successfully defend the Webb Ellis Cup for the first time.

And what may sound like an ideal ending to a story makes way for the next chapter as he will set up home away from the Western Cape for the first time since 2015, when he started a two-year stint in Bordeaux, by joining Ulster.

Kitshoff could be forgiven for feeling the nerves, given his long association with Western Province and Stormers. From watching games at Newlands as a Paul Roos schoolboy to representing the union at U18 level, making his senior pro debut as a 19-year-old in 2011, taking over the captaincy in 2020 and reaching a record number of Stormers caps, every part of Kitshoff’s career has revolved around the Cape side.

“It means everything to me,” Kitshoff admits. “Except for those two years in Bordeaux, my whole career has been based with the Stormers and WP rugby. They are the main reason why I am where I am today, learning from the senior guys how to play some tough rugby. I’m thankful and honoured to be part of such an awesome union for more than a decade.”

Stormers are well placed to give their skipper a perfect send-off, having sealed the battle for the South African Shield in March while Kitshoff was in a Springbok camp. He says a second straight URC title would be “massive” for Stormers after the Cape side had to wait over 20 years for their first cross-continental tournament win.