IRELAND, HERE WE COME!

Former Stormers captain Steven Kitshoff and his wife Aimee will soon be leaving Cape Town for Ulster – hopefully via the Rugby World Cup in France

- MARELIZE GRBICH

THAT red hair, that build, that power in the scrum, that presence on the field – Steven Kitshoff is one of a kind, a guy you know about even if you don’t follow rugby all that closely.

People who do will tell you he’s one of the best props in the world and the glue that binds a team together. He’s a Springbok legend and a Stormers hero, and as captain he’s led the Cape Town-based team to new heights.

But as the cliché goes, behind every successful man . . . And the woman Steven credits for helping to keep him grounded and focused is an attractive blonde with a mile-wide smile and an infectious personality.

Steven and Aimee, who wed in the winelands in December 2018, meet us for coffee at a café in Mouille Point, Cape Town, on a Sunday morning. Steven (31) is scheduled to return to Pretoria where he’s training with the Springboks and flew to the Mother City to spend some quality time with his wife before his schedule heats up ahead of the Rugby World Cup in September.

The couple don’t have much time left in Cape Town. In November Steven will be joining Irish club Ulster, where he recently signed a three-year contract.

But first, there’s the Rugby Championship as well as warm-up matches for the world cup.

Life is hectic and it’s hard when they’re not together, but Aimee (33) has been by Steven’s side for a long time and there’s nothing she enjoys more than seeing him reap the rewards of his hard work.