Etzebeth opens up about move to the Sharks

Springbok lock Eben Etzebeth has opened up about his latest move which will see him don the Sharks jersey after taking early leave of his contract with Toulon. 

Etzebeth has spent the lion’s share of his career with Western Province and the Stormers, for whom he boasts 68 collective caps. 

The 30 year-old says being closer to family and friends was a key pull factor in his decision to return home to South Africa, and has signed an unusually big contract which is set to keep Kings Park his stomping ground until 2027. 

"These are exciting times," he said. 

"I'm looking forward to coming to the Sharks and living in Durban and I expect this to be a wonderful chapter in my career. 

"I can see things are happening there, Siya (Kolisi) is there and we've been friends since were in the provincial under-19s together and now we will get to play for the Sharks together along with my Springbok team-mates Bongi Mbonambi, Makazole Mapimpi, Lukhanyo Am, Thomas du Toit, all guys I know well. 

"I'm also really excited to meet a few new guys. 

"I chatted to Siya [Kolisi], I gave Thomas [du Toit] a call and chatted to them. 

"Off the field, things work, on the field we can see things are working and the team is doing well, I enjoyed watching the last game against the Bulls and the victory away from home and this is a brand I definitely want to be associated with and which I'm proud to be joining." 

Sharks CEO Eduard Coetzee is upbeat regarding the new development. 

"Attracting a player of Etzebeth's calibre underlines the importance the Sharks place on building a winning squad, which is aligned to the vision of being the biggest franchise in world rugby," he said. 

"We're also focused on building a strong group of players for a number of years, not just the immediate future and Eben's long-term contract reflects this. 

"We want to create a winning culture here at the Sharks across the board and from a team perspective, bringing players who have achieved at the highest level helps in our goal of achieving this."