Faf de Klerk’s Toyota Cheetahs move has now shifted from headline signing to immediate squad reality.
The Free State side confirmed that De Klerk leads their latest group of arrivals from Wednesday, 1 July, joining from Yokohama Canon Eagles as the Cheetahs continue to reshape their senior and junior structures.
The club’s update frames the 2019 and 2023 Rugby World Cup-winning Springbok as the tone-setter in a wider recruitment push, with outside back Henry Immelman arriving from the Bulls and loose forwards Simon Miller and Siya Ningiza also added to the squad. Centre Kobus Janse van Rensburg is due to follow in January 2027.
Why De Klerk Changes The Cheetahs Equation
De Klerk’s value is not simply profile. The Cheetahs have been explicit about the qualities they expect him to bring: competitiveness, leadership and top-level game management.
That matters in a Currie Cup environment where tempo, exit control and pressure kicking can quickly separate rebuilt squads from settled contenders. A veteran scrum-half of De Klerk’s pedigree gives the Cheetahs an instant organiser around whom younger carriers and outside backs can work.
The recruitment pattern is also telling. Immelman strengthens the back three, Miller and Ningiza deepen the loose-forward group, and the delayed arrival of Janse van Rensburg adds a development strand beyond the immediate campaign.
For the Cheetahs, this is the clearest sign yet that their rebuild is being built around proven decision-makers rather than hopeful depth alone.
Sources: Toyota Cheetahs; Toyota Cheetahs YouTube.
