Duhan van der Merwe (born 4 June 1995) is a South African professional rugby union player who competes as a wing internationally for Scotland and domestically for United Rugby Championship club Edinburgh. He represents Scotland having qualified on residency grounds.
![]() van der Merwe representing Montpellier during the Top 14 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Date of birth | 4 June 1995 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Place of birth | George, South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 106 kg (234 lb; 16 st 10 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
School | Hoërskool Outeniqua | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
University | University of Pretoria | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Notable relative(s) | Akker van der Merwe (brother) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
van der Merwe's rugby journey started in George, South Africa, playing for Outeniqua High School before gaining provincial recognition in youth tournaments. He impressed at the Craven Week, earning a spot on the South Africa Schools team and excelling in the Under-18 International Series.
Transitioning to the professional level, he joined the Blue Bulls' academy in 2014 and made his mark with the South Africa under-20 squad at the World Rugby U20 Championship. He continued to shine domestically with the Blue Bulls and UP Tuks, leading as a top scorer in the Varsity Cup. His international career began when he became eligible for Scotland in 2020, showcasing his talent in tournaments like the Six Nations Championship and the Rugby World Cup.[vague]
Early life
editvan der Merwe was born and grew up in George in the Western Cape province of South Africa. He attended and played rugby for Outeniqa High School (Hoërskool Outeniqua), earning several provincial colours by representing the SWD Eagles at youth tournaments. In 2011, he represented SWD [South Western Districts] at the Under-16 Grant Khomo Week held in Queenstown, appearing in all three matches and scoring a try in their 25–8 victory over KwaZulu-Natal.[1]
The following year, he played for SWD at the premier schoolboy rugby tournament in South Africa, the Under-18 Craven Week. He scored four tries – two against the Limpopo Blue Bulls[2] and two against Western Province[3] – at the tournament held in Port Elizabeth. He was named in the South Africa Schools team at the conclusion of the tournament,[4] and made two starts for them in the Under-18 International Series, helping them to victories over France[5] and England.[6]
Still eligible for the Under-18s in 2013, van der Merwe again played in all three of SWD's matches at the Craven Week held in Polokwane. He scored three tries – two against Eastern Province[7] and one in a victory over the Blue Bulls[8] – and was again included in the South African Schools team.[9] He scored a try in their 19–14 victory over England in their first match of the 2013 Under-18 International Series,[10] and followed that up with two tries in their next match against France.[11] He didn't score in their final match against Wales,[12][13] but still finished as the top try scorer in the competition.
He also played rugby sevens, where he represented South Africa.[14]
Club career
editYouth
editAfter high school, van der Merwe moved to Pretoria, where he joined the Blue Bulls' academy for the 2014 season.[15]
He returned to domestic action to play for the Blue Bulls U19 team in the 2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship. He made twelve starts in the competition and scored a total of eight tries, the second-highest by a Blue Bulls player and joint-third overall in Group A of the competition.[16] After scoring a single try in matches against Sharks U19[17] and Western Province U19,[18] he scored two tries against the Leopards U19 in a 52–27 win.[19] Another try in their second meeting against Western Province[20] was followed by a hat-trick in a 46–24 victory over the Leopards in Potchefstroom.[21] The helped his side finish top of the log[22] and make it all the way to the final of the competition before losing to Western Province.[23] In addition to his appearance for the Under-19 team, he also played one match for the Blue Bulls U21 side, in a 24–10 victory over Free State U21.[24]
He had an operation at the start of 2015, which ruled him out of action for the majority of the season, also ruling him out of contention with a second consecutive Under 20 Championship.[25] He returned to action for the Blue Bulls U21s, making six starts in the Under-21 Provincial Championship, scoring one try in their 43–10 victory over Eastern Province U21.[26]
At the start of 2016, he played Varsity Cup rugby with UP Tuks, starting all eight of their matches. He scored tries in defeats to NWU Pukke[27] and UFS Shimlas[28] and scored two tries in their 68–25 victory over CUT Ixias.[29] In their final match of the regular season against bottom team UCT Ikey Tigers, Van der Merwe scored six of his side's eleven tries in a 100–25 victory.[30] With bonus points in effect for scoring tries that originated outside the final 22, Van der Merwe's point haul in the match was a massive 48 points and he finished the competition as the top try scorer[31] and the fourth-highest points scorer.
After the Varsity Cup, van der Merwe made his domestic first class debut for the Blue Bulls in the 2016 Currie Cup qualification series. He made an appearance as a replacement in a 14–19 defeat to the Eastern Province Kings,[32] and made his first start a week later against the Pumas,[33] which would be his final action in a Blue Bulls shirt.
Montpellier
editHe moved to France in July 2016 to join Top 14 side Montpellier, signing a youth contract with the team.[34] He made his debut for the senior team in their Round 15 match against Pau, replacing Joffrey Michel.[35] A recurring hip injury, and difficulties adjusting to the culture and language, meant he gained little game time.[36]
Edinburgh
editvan der Merwe signed a two-year professional contract with Scottish Pro14 side Edinburgh ahead of the 2017–18 season.[37] He failed his medical due to a long-standing hip injury, but Edinburgh head coach Richard Cockerill signed him despite this.[38] The injury meant he missed half of his first season. However, his impact afterwards was strong. One area of improvement was seeking to get more involved in the game, from his wing position.[39]
Worcester Warriors
editOn 4 January 2021, it was announced that Van der Merwe would move to England to sign for Worcester Warriors ahead of the 2021–22 Premiership Rugby season on a long-term deal.[40] Due to the club entering administration all Warriors players had their contracts terminated on 5 October 2022.[41]
Only hours after having his contract terminated at Worcester Warriors it was confirmed that Van der Merwe would return to Edinburgh on a long-term deal.[42]
International career
editSouth Africa U20
editvan der Merwe was a late call-up to the South Africa Under-20 squad that participated at the 2014 IRB Junior World Championship in New Zealand,[43] replacing Rohan Janse van Rensburg who picked up an injury in South Africa's 61–5 victory against Scotland in the opening round in Pool C.[44] Van der Merwe was an unused replacement for their 33–24 victory over hosts New Zealand in their second match,[45] but started their final pool match, a 21–8 victory over Samoa[46] to help the team finish top of their pool to progress to the semi-finals. He didn't feature in their 32–25 win over New Zealand at that stage,[47] but was named on the bench for the final against England and came on as a replacement in the second half, with South Africa losing 20–21[48] to finish as runners-up in the competition.
Scotland
editvan der Merwe became available for the Scottish international rugby team in Summer 2020. This was based on residency having then lived in Scotland for 3 years since he joined Edinburgh in 2017.[49] He made his international debut for Scotland against Georgia on 23 October 2020, scoring a try in the process.[50] [51] He doubled his test try-scoring tally on 14 November, touching down one of Scotland's four tries in Florence during victory over Italy.[52] then adding another in Dublin on 5 December.
van der Merwe scored the decisive try in Scotland's victory over England in the opening match of the 2021 Six Nations Championship.[53] The following month he scored a further two tries against Italy in a 52-10 victory.[54] This was followed by another brace in the final match of the championship in Paris, the second coming in 84th minute of play to secure a dramatic last-gasp win, Scotland's first in France since 1999.[55] This brought his tally to eight tries in his first ten test matches.
van der Merwe was selected in Scotland's 33-player squad for the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France;[56] however, they exited the tournament in the pool stage, failing to beat both Ireland and South Africa.
van der Merwe was then selected for the 2024 Six Nations Championship. He scored his first Scotland hat-trick against England, after scoring two in the opener against Wales.
van der Merwe was selected for the Scotland team's Skyscanner Americas Tour in the summer of 2024, his 2 tries on that tour against USA and Uruguay, saw him overtake Stuart Hogg as the scorer of the most international tries for Scotland.[57]
British & Irish Lions
editIn May 2021, van der Merwe was selected in the 37-man squad for the British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa.[58]
He took to the field in the opening warm-up match against Japan at Murrayfield, scoring a try in the process and becoming Lion #841.[59] After performing well in the tour's warm up games, scoring five tries in four appearances, he was selected in the starting line up for the first Test and played 70 minutes as the Lions won 17-22.[60][61] He subsequently played the full 80 minutes of both the second and third Tests as well.[62][63]
Personal life
editvan der Merwe and his wife Nika married in 2023.[64][65]
van der Merwe is the younger brother of Akker van der Merwe, also a professional rugby union player who plays at hooker.[66]
Career statistics
editList of international tries
editReferences
edit- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – SWD 25–8 KZN". South African Rugby Union. 4 July 2011. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – SWD 46–18 Limpopo". South African Rugby Union. 10 July 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – WP 39–33 SWD". South African Rugby Union. 12 July 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Squad – South Africa : 2012 SA Schools 2012". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – South Africa 17–7 France". South African Rugby Union. 10 August 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – South Africa 36–29 England". South African Rugby Union. 18 August 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – Eastern Province 14–40 SWD". South African Rugby Union. 11 July 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – Blue Bulls 29–37 SWD". South African Rugby Union. 13 July 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Squad – South Africa : 2013 SA Schools 2013". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – South Africa 19–14 England". South African Rugby Union. 9 August 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – South Africa 17–13 France". South African Rugby Union. 13 August 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – South Africa 14–13 Wales". South African Rugby Union. 17 August 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Try Scorers – 2013 SA Schools 2013". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "WP youngsters in Sevens squads" (Press release). Western Province Rugby. 11 January 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "Strong local flavour in junior contracted U19 group" (Press release). Bulls. 30 October 2013. Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Try Scorers – 2014 Absa Under 19 Competition". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – Blue Bulls U19 33–18 Sharks U19". South African Rugby Union. 19 July 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – WP U19 16–11 Blue Bulls U19". South African Rugby Union. 16 August 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – Blue Bulls U19 52–27 Leopards U19". South African Rugby Union. 23 August 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – Blue Bulls U19 44–29 WP U19". South African Rugby Union. 30 August 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – Leopards U19 24–46 Blue Bulls U19". South African Rugby Union. 20 September 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Log – 2014 Absa Under 19 Competition". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – Western Province U19 33–26 Blue Bulls U19". South African Rugby Union. 25 October 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – Blue Bulls U21 24–10 Free State U21". South African Rugby Union. 1 August 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "DHL WP stars in Junior Bok trials" (Press release). Western Province Rugby. 25 March 2015. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – Blue Bulls U21 43–10 EP Kings U21". South African Rugby Union. 2 October 2015. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – FNB UP-TUKS 15–38 FNB NWU-PUKKE". South African Rugby Union. 8 February 2016. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – FNB UP-TUKS 46–47 FNB UFS SHIMLAS". South African Rugby Union. 15 February 2016. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – FNB CUT 25–68 FNB UP-TUKS". South African Rugby Union. 21 March 2016. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – FNB UCT IKEYS 25–100 FNB UP-TUKS". South African Rugby Union. 28 March 2016. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Try Scorers – 2016 FNB Varsity Cup presented by Steinhoff International". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – EP Kings 19–14 Vodacom Blue Bulls". South African Rugby Union. 7 May 2016. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – Vodacom Blue Bulls 13–25 Steval Pumas". South African Rugby Union. 13 May 2016. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "Duhan Van der Merwe" (in French). Montpellier Hérault Rugby. Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
- ^ "Pau vs Montpellier". rugbyrama (in French). 29 December 2016. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
- ^ "Exclusive interview: Duhan van der Merwe ready for Scotland call-up". www.sarugbymag.co.za. 12 July 2020. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
- ^ "Duhan van der Merwe: Edinburgh sign South African wing from Montpellier". BBC Sport. 16 May 2017. Retrieved 9 September 2017.
- ^ "van der Merwe failed Edinburgh medical". BBC Sport. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
- ^ Scott, Steve (15 January 2020). "Duhan van der Merwe shows his gratitude to Edinburgh with new deal". The Courier. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
- ^ "Duhan van der Merwe: Worcester sign Edinburgh and Scotland winger for 2021-22". BBC Sport. 4 January 2021. Retrieved 15 December 2021.
- ^ Kitson, Robert (5 October 2022). "Worcester player and staff contracts terminated after high court ruling". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
- ^ "Duhan's coming home – Edinburgh Rugby". edinburghrugby.org. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
- ^ "Outeniqua Old Boy Gets Baby Bok Call Up". Youth Sports Network. 5 June 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – South Africa 61–5 Scotland". South African Rugby Union. 2 June 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – New Zealand 24–33 South Africa". South African Rugby Union. 6 June 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – Samoa 8–21 South Africa". South African Rugby Union. 10 June 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – South Africa 32–25 New Zealand". South African Rugby Union. 15 June 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – England 21–20 South Africa". South African Rugby Union. 20 June 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "DUHAN VAN DER MERWE" https://scottishrugby.org
- ^ @Scotlandteam (23 October 2020). "🔄 Oli Kebble comes on for his..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Scotland v Georgia: Van der Merwe & Kebble to make debuts at Murrayfield". BBC Sport. 21 October 2020.
- ^ "Scotland earn comeback win in Italy". BBC Sport. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
- ^ "England v Scotland - Rugby Union". BBC Sport. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
- ^ "Scotland v Italy - Rugby Union". BBC Sport. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
- ^ "Wales win title as Scotland beat France". BBC Sport. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
- ^ "Scotland squad named for Rugby World Cup 2023". Scottish Rugby Union. 16 August 2023.
- ^ "Match Report: Uruguay19 Scotland 31". SRU. Retrieved 27 July 2024.
- ^ "British and Irish Lions 2021: Sam Simmonds in 37-man squad but Billy Vunipola misses out". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
- ^ "Player Numbers". British & Irish Lions.
- ^ "Jones to captain Lions in first Test". BBC Sport.
- ^ "Lions fight back to clinch series opener". BBC Sport.
- ^ "Relive South Africa v Lions second Test". BBC Sport. 30 July 2021.
- ^ "Lions suffer agonising late series loss". BBC Sport.
- ^ https://www.scotsman.com/sport/rugby-union/emotional-scotland-hero-duhan-van-der-merwe-says-getting-married-revived-him-after-tough-times-and-relives-best-try-of-my-career-4014596 [bare URL]
- ^ "Scots hunk to face Ireland married to stunning beauty who could be queen of WAGs". 5 October 2023.
- ^ "Duhan van der Merwe makes history in FNB Tuks colours". Varsity Cup. 19 April 2016. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
- ^ "Duhan van der Merwe". 4 February 2023.
External links
edit- Duhan van der Merwe at ESPNscrum
- Duhan van der Merwe at ItsRugby.co.uk
- Duhan van der Merwe at Scottish Rugby Union
- Duhan van der Merwe at Edinburgh Rugby