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Van Wyk finds a new club 97 days after quitting Leicester early

(Photo by Malcolm Couzens/Getty Images)

South African Kobus van Wyk has found a new club 97 days after quitting eventual Gallagher Premiership title winners Leicester. It was March 31 when it was announced that the 30-year-old winger, who can also play midfield, had left Welford Road with immediate effect despite the English season still having a number of months left to run. 

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It was a curious parting of the ways given that Leicester had so much to play for in a campaign where they suffered numerous injuries before getting ultimately crowned Premiership champions with their dramatic June 18 Twickenham final win over Saracens.

No reason was specified at the time as to why an early release had been agreed between van Wyk and Leicester, but the South African has now resurfaced at Zebre Parma, the Italian URC club.

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      “I’m looking forward to starting next season,” he said after the Parma-based franchise added him to a list of signings that includes Lorenzo Pani, Simone Gesi, Damiano Mazza, Ratko Jelic and ex-Bristol out-half Tiff Eden.

      “I’m looking forward to meeting the Zebra family, wearing the club jersey, putting myself to the test in this new adventure and contributing to the growth of the team.”  

      A Leicester statement issued when van Wyk left them 14 weeks ago read: “Leicester have agreed to terms with Kobus van Wyk, allowing the outside-back an early release from his contract with the club. The 30-year-old has made 18 appearances for the club since his debut in October 2020.

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      “Prior to joining Tigers, van Wyk played for New Zealand’s Hurricanes and had spells with the Stormers and Sharks in South Africa, as well as a short stint with French club Bordeaux-Begles. Kobus van Wyk’s release is effective immediately.”

      Leicester boss Steve Borthwick added at the time: “I want to thank Kobus for his contribution to our club during his time in Leicester. He joined us at the start of this journey we are on and has played a part in building the foundations for what is to come at Tigers. I wish him and his family all the best for the next chapter.”

      The South African made just a single Premiership appearance last season – versus Saracens in October – but played three times in the Premiership Cup, most recently against Newcastle on March 18 not long before his departure from Leicester.

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      C
      CO 1 hour ago
      Bok rule-benders are changing the game. They deserve respect

      Okay, clearly I'm not suggesting rugby be league or not competitive, quite the reverse. I loathe league.


      Some Bok supporters have this conspiracy theory that if any other team did silly restarts to manufacture scrums and lineout leaping in the middle of the field that it wouldn't be criticized but congratulated.


      The fact is no other team is doing this silly restart and jumping stuff because it's viewed as…..silly.


      A dummy at no time obstructs the opposition or cynically attempts to extract a ruling. It was a perfectly executed blindside try which simply caught the defence asleep. It's not comparable with a deliberate offside at the restart or silly jumps to create yet another boring maul against a team that predictably lacked the firepower to stop it.


      As I've said with a player being unnecessarily lifted in the middle of the park then that is creating obstruction as defense isn't allowed to tackle a player in the air.


      Apart from Rassie the rest of us in the world of rugby don't want Rassie to create a new source of obstruction outside the maul.as we don't want to transform rugby into blocking like gridiron.


      It would be great actually if world rugby said if the Boks want to lift their players outside of lineouts then the opposition can just smash them in the air as it would be a learning lesson for the Boks.


      But of course that would be ridiculously unsafe so the whole stupid idea needs to be banned, it's not innovative it's just stuffing around with the game we all enjoy.


      Rassie is a great rugby man, of that I've no doubt but he has received lengthy bans for a reason and this nonsense is that side of Rassie that's not great.


      At the restart it was a penalty as the player wasnt just offside ahead of the kicker but he then interfered with play. Yes, perhaps a scrum if he hadn't of interfered with the ball offside.


      Again, another law change needed due to Rassie. Deliberately not restarting correctly, professional foul, yellow card. I just want to watch a contest not a first five farting around with a cynical play where the opposition has no part to play, we want a contest.


      I cannot reinforce how absurd these ‘innovations’ are, they're not tactics that other coaches want to do as they're silly.


      You think the Bok scrum is incredible, if you truly believe that then contact Rassie and ask him to cynically organize all scrum restarts this season when his team kicksoff with tier one sides like the Allblacks and Argentina feeding the ball into the scrum, that will be fantastic to watch as Pumas and Allblacks steam into the backline with free ball.


      We both know the Boks wouldn't dare to run it against a top tier team so why do it against Italy? Respect….


      You're right it's a good era for the game, let's not muck it up with this abject nonsense. We don't want to see a midfield ‘lineout’ to make yet more mauls.


      Again, mauls and scrums aren't a position of strength for just the Boks.


      Rassie isn't creating a dynasty either, the Allblacks won two world cups in a row which abruptly ended.


      The Boks are in the mix to win again in Australia but I can tell you now they're not doing themselves any favors with all the perceived arrogance.


      We all saw what happened to the invincible Allblacks in 2007, humiliation in a quarter.

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