Nel pens one-year extension with Edinburgh

Edinburgh Rugby centurion and Scotland internationalist WP Nel today penned a new one-year deal that will see the tighthead prop remain in the Scottish capital for the 2023/24 season.

The fan favourite will now enter his 12th season in Edinburgh – having joined from Cheetahs in 2012 – giving him the opportunity to add to his 186 appearances in the capital front row, a total only bettered by fellow club legend front-rowers Ross Ford (199) and Allan Jacobsen (273).

Nel is currently fifth on the club’s all-time appearance list – behind Jacobsen, Chris Paterson (205), Ross Ford and Grant Gilchrist (188) – while his 268 club and representative rugby appearances in all competitions are the 12^th most by a tighthead prop in the pro era.

Still operating at the pinnacle of the sport, Nel, 36, featured in four of Scotland’s recent Guinness Six Nations matches – starting the Calcutta Cup victory at Twickenham – and will soon set his mind on a third Rugby World Cup with the national side.

The tighthead has also enjoyed good form at club level, most notably in an 80-minute display in January’s Heineken Champions Cup triumph against Saracens, where he won a last-minute scrum penalty to seal the victory in front of a fervent home support.

The one-year extension is expected be Nel’s final season in an impressive career, which has so far seen the tighthead make 345 professional appearances, including 54 caps for Scotland.