Hollywoodbets Sharks lock Le Roux Roets is the latest South African player to sign with the English club that uses the same ferocious and feared fish as its emblem, the Sale Sharks.
The departure of the 29-year-old from Durban at the end of the season has been an open secret for a while, but on Tuesday his new club confirmed the signing and welcomed the former Pumas stalwart to the Sale family.
He will join former Sharks in the three Du Preez brothers Robert, Jean-Luc and Dan at the club, as well as former DHL Stormers and Junior Springbok captain Ernst van Rhyn.
Born in Boksburg, the more than two metres tall and 134 kilogram behemoth has had brief overseas stints before with Racing 92 in France and the Waratahs in Australia, and before he signed for the Sharks a few seasons ago after initially going to the Durban team on loan he had worn the colours of both the Vodacom Bulls and the Emirates Lions.
Roets’ size and willingness to do the hard work without having his name necessarily written up in lights was what inspired the Durban version of the Sharks to lure him to KZN, and the Manchester based team have a similar reason for contracting him if you note the words of Sale Sharks coach Alex Sanderson.
“From the conversations we’ve had and from what I have seen so far, Le Roux fits our mould perfectly,” said Sanderson in a statement to the Sale Sharks’ rugby website.
“We’ve talked about what motivates him and what drives him, and he said he just wants to do the hard work and make others around him look better. It’s not about the Hollywood moments for him and I like that attitude. I think South Africans, culturally and through their mentality, have something in common with the hard working no-nonsense northern mentality.
“I have no doubt he’ll be another one (South African) who will fit in well here. He loves to bang hard and he’ll add that bit more weight and power to our pack. We’re really excited to get him here to see what he can do.”
It would appear that Roets is effectively being lured to Sale to replace another South African big man. Former DHL Stormers forward Cobus Wiese was recently signed to the Vodacom Bulls for next season.