Springbok prop and the DHL Stormers’ championship winning captain Steven Kitshoff says he wants to make this season a memorable last one for him with the Cape team before he heads to Ireland to continue his career with Ulster.
Ulster confirmed on Wednesday what has been an open secret for some time - the World Cup winning loose-head will be on their books from after next year’s edition of the global rugby event in France. But that means Kitshoff still has unfinished business with the Stormers, who he will play for until the end of the current season.
The worst-kept secret in rugby... pic.twitter.com/q3baFAA8l1
— Ulster Rugby (@UlsterRugby) November 9, 2022
The man in action. @StevenKitshoff pic.twitter.com/zpduajdPGY
— Ulster Rugby (@UlsterRugby) November 9, 2022
And while Kitshoff has already achieved what most people would have considered the impossible this time last year by leading the Stormers to the inaugural Vodacom United Rugby Championship title, he is determined to follow that up with more glory in the blue and white jersey of the Cape franchise.
“Growing up in Cape Town, playing for the Stormers was always a dream and I was lucky enough to live it,” said Kitshoff in a statement issued by the Stormers on Wednesday.
“We still have quite a way to go this season, and I am very excited about what we can achieve together. I want to make this campaign a memorable one before I move on and begin the next chapter in my career.”
Steven Kitshoff will play for the DHL Stormers for the rest of the 2022/23 season before heading to Ireland.
— DHL Stormers (@THESTORMERS) November 9, 2022
??? 'We still have quite a way to go this season and I am very excited about what we can achieve together'https://t.co/oKg5YAYY5E
Stormers coach John Dobson said after a recent break of the story about Ulster’s interest in securing Kitshoff’s signature that his franchise would do everything it could to keep the Bok in the Cape.
However, obviously the Ulster offer wasn’t one the Stormers could match and was one Kitshoff couldn’t refuse, so Dobson said on Wednesday that the player would go with the blessing of the franchise he had served so well for so many years.
Kitshoff is the third most capped Stormers of all time and should shortly move higher than that, with his current tally of caps on 122. Dobson said that Kitshoff will leave the Cape as a legend of the sport in the region.
“Steven has been an incredibly loyal service of the Stormers over many years and he will leave at the end of the season to take up what is a life-changing offer with our gratitude and well wishes,” said Dobson.
“He is a true Stormers man who will always call Cape Town home and we are hopeful that we will see him back here in our colours one day once his contract in Ireland is up. Of course we still have the rest of the season with him and knowing him like I do, I have no question that he will be giving everything for the cause, as he always has.”