Bulls player Lizo Gqoboka gets snapped up by the Stormers

The Stormers have continued to prepare for life after their departing captain Steven Kitshoff by signing yet another loosehead prop, this time from the Bulls.

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Earlier this month this publication reported that the Stormers had re-signed Lions prop Sti Sithole and now it can confirm that he will he joined by Lizo Gqoboka .

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Kitshoff, who is currently the most capped Stormers player, wore the blue and white jersey for the final time on Saturday, captaining them to a 19-14 United Rugby Championship (URC) final loss at the Cape Town stadium. But before the World Cup winning Springbok can even empty his locker, at the union, he will be met by the likes of Sithole and Gqoboka who will be fighting for it.

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A long-serving member of the Bulls side since joining from the Eastern Province Kings, Gqoboka is set to finally bring to an end his seven year stay at the Pretoria-based union. The South African News has been informed by a well placed source close to the Springbok prop, that the move was actually a long-time coming.

STORMERS TO PAY TRANSFER FEE TO BULLS FOR GQOBOKA

“The move has been in the pipeline for maybe about a year now, they (Stormers) have been interested in signing him for quite sometime. Even now, it was not easy to get it over the line as Lizo (Gqoboka) still had a year to go on his Bulls contract. But such as their determination to get him, they were willing to sit down with the Bulls and negotiate a transfer fee for the remainder of his contract.”. Said the trusted source.

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Gqoboka is set to join his new Stormers teammates on July 1, just in time to have pre-season with his new teammates. Both he and Sithole will have big boots to fill in the absence of Kitshoff who led the side to two URC finals while lifting the trophy in its inaugural campaign last year.

NEW LEASE ON LIFE

The 33-year-old Gqoboka will be looking to put behind a rather miserable final year or two of his stay at the Bulls where a combination of injuries and being starved of game time when fit, saw him lose his status as an important figure at the union.

This article was originally published by Yolulwe Qoshe.