Springboks great Schalk Burger has weighed in on the rumours linking Damian Willemse to Leinster, while ex-coach Robbie Fleck believes the Stormers could copy the Irish province.
Leinster signed All Blacks back Jordie Barrett on a short-term deal, linking up with the squad after last year’s November internationals and has made a telling impact since his arrival.
The 28-year-old is set to return to New Zealand at the end of the season, and the Irish giants are reportedly searching the market for his replacement, with double World Cup winner Willemse linked with a move to the club.
Willemse to Leinster?
Like Barrett, Springboks star Willemse can play multiple positions in the backline and would be a like-for-like replacement if he were to make the move north.
Rugby Pass reported that Leinster’s billionaire super fan Paul Coulson would help fund a move to bring Willemse to Dublin, but more recent reports from South Africa state that the Stormers are not willing to even consider allowing the back to exit his deal that runs through to 2027 early.
Still, former Springboks Burger, Fleck and Jean de Villiers discussed the possibility of the 26-year-old joining Leinster and what it would mean for all parties involved.
“I think it would be brilliant for him and Leinster,” former Stormers coach and ex-Bok centre Fleck remarked.
Burger agreed but added that it would be a telling blow to the Cape Town-based franchise.
“I’ve always been a big fan of Gazza, so I mean a big loss for us that the Stormers here in Cape Town because he brings something special and for the Boks,” he said.
Fleck added: “But he can always come back, I mean Jean you went to Munster and came back.”
Burger continued: “Yeah, well is 26 so still young. He can always come back.
“I still like him at 12 at the Stormers, it’s amazing when he is at 12. His close contact skills are off the charts.
“He’s such an instinctive player, and I think that allows him just to enter wherever [in the backline].”
Leinster have got good value from their foreign signings this season with French tighthead prop Rabah Slimani, Springboks lock RG Snyman, and All Blacks star Barrett all impressing in the blue jersey.
De Villiers believes that Willemse would make a similar impact on the club if he were to take up the opportunity to join Jacques Nienaber at Leinster.
“The value that these foreign internationals bring to a squad like Leinster, especially during Six Nations, when you need to be resting players, these internationals form the core of the squad,” he said.
“They give a little bit of IP over to the youngsters that’s in the environment and I think for Damian it would be a fantastic life experience from a rugby point of view.”
Copying Leinster
This prompted Fleck, who coached the Stormers between 2016 and 2019, to suggest that the Cape Town-based franchise could copy Leinster’s set-up.
He drew similarities between the two clubs, with the Stormers also able to draw talent from the plethora of talent at schoolboy level and the universities in Cape Town.
“Surely the Stormers could copy the Leinster model because of the schoolboy talent that’s here, the university talent that’s here, the natural sort of intake,” he said.
“Surely we can bring in some foreign overseas players, we did it with Tony Brown and Chris Jack in the past, they all added value. You [Jean] returning from Munster added huge value to the Stormers.
“I mean, it’s got to be the way forward if you have the budget.”
That’s the real stumbling block for the Stormers, according to De Villiers.
“That was what I was going to say, do we have the budget? Can we compete with the other offers available for those quality players?” he added.
Burger agreed but pointed to a sharp bit of business from the Stormers by bringing Deon Fourie back from France.
“You get a guy like Deon Fourie back as an overseas pro and becomes a Springbok at age 38 but the value he’s added to that squad is immeasurable,” he said.
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Src: Planetrugby.com - https://www.planetrugby.com/news/schalk-burger-weighs-in-on-damian-willemse-rumours-as-ex-springbok-calls-for-stormers-to-copy-leinster
