Tristan Leyds is set to make his Blitzboks debut in Perth this weekend, hoping to kickstart his rugby career Down Under just like his older brother Dillyn.
The 26-year-old Tristan, one of two debutants in a reshuffled Blitzbok squad, aims to follow in the footsteps of his 31-year-old boet.
In 2014, Dillyn moved to Perth for a year, where he represented Perth Spirit and the Western Force in Super Rugby.
He returned home the following year, to join the Stormers and go on to play Test rugby and become a two-time Champions Cup winner with La Rochelle, his current French club.
And Tristan says: “Hopefully Perth will also be good for me. I am very keen to join the Blitzboks in the series. I have trained with them for close to five months now and just signed my first contract with them, so to be on the same field as the guys will be pretty special.
“[Dillyn] has been very supportive of me during my career so far, and it was just a special moment for me to see how happy he was with the news.”
Ex-Stormer Tristan highlighted the Blitzboks’ expertise, stating: “These Blitzboks are as skillful as anyone. It is much tougher going to sevens from 15s and even though I thought I was fit, it was a tough battle to get fit enough to train with these guys.”
The team has arrived in Perth, and will face Canada (at 6:44am) and Spain (12.22pm) on Friday and Argentina (6:38am) on Saturday in Pool A.
Tristan adds: “For me personally, it will be a huge moment to play for South Africa, but it is not about me as a person, but rather what I contribute to the team.”
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