Benjamin Christoffel Gerhardus Venter (born 15 May 1987 in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

) is a South African

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player, currently playing with

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

Pro D2 Rugby Pro D2, also known as Pro D2 is the second tier of rugby union club competition division in France. It is operated by Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR) which also runs the division directly above, the first division Top 14. Rugby Pro D2 was in ...

side

Montauban Montauban (, ; oc, Montalban ) is a commune in the Tarn-et-Garonne department, region of Occitania, Southern France. It is the capital of the department and lies north of Toulouse. Montauban is the most populated town in Tarn-et-Garonne, an ...

. His regular position is

lock Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

or flanker.

Career

Youth

He represented the side in the 2006 Under-19 Provincial Championship and the side in the 2007 and 2008 Under-21 Provincial Championships. That team won the Championships in both 2007 and 2008. Venter played most of his youth rugby on the Wing.

Griquas

Ben was part of the

2008 Currie Cup Premier Division The 2008 Currie Cup Premier Division season (known as the ABSA Currie Cup due to sponsorship) was contested from 20 June through to 25 October. The Currie Cup is an annual domestic competition for provincial rugby union teams in South Africa. T ...

squad and signed a senior professional contract with at the end of 2008. He was named in the senior professional squad for the

2009 Vodacom Cup The 2009 Vodacom Cup was the 12th edition of this annual domestic cup competition. The Vodacom Cup is played between province, provincial rugby union teams in South Africa from the Currie Cup Premier and First Divisions. Competition There were 1 ...

and

2009 Currie Cup Premier Division The 2009 Absa Currie Cup Premier Division season was the 71st season in the competition since it started in 1889. The competition was contested from 10 July through to 31 October. It was won by the Blue Bulls, who defeated the Free State Cheetahs ...

competitions, but missed most of that season due to injury. Venter was also named in the senior professional squad for the

2010 Vodacom Cup The 2010 Vodacom Cup was contested from 26 February to 7 May. The 2010 Vodacom Cup is the 13th edition of this annual domestic cup competition. The Vodacom Cup is played between provincial rugby union teams in South Africa from the Currie Cup Prem ...

and

2010 Currie Cup Premier Division The 2010 Absa Currie Cup Premier Division was the 72nd season in the competition since it started in 1889. The competition was contested from 9 July through to 30 October. It was won by the , who defeated 30–10 in the final at . Patrick Lambi ...

competitions.

Border Bulldogs

Venter joined

East London East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the f ...

-based side later in 2010. He was included in their squad for the

2010 Currie Cup First Division The 2010 Currie Cup First Division was contested from 16 July through to 15 October 2010. The tournament (also known as the Absa Currie Cup First Division for sponsorship reasons) is the second tier of South Africa's premier domestic rugby union ...

season and, after playing in a compulsory friendly match against the , he started nine of the Bulldogs' matches during the season, scoring one try against , helping his side win the match 50–46. He played in sixteen matches during the

2011 Vodacom Cup The 2011 Vodacom Cup was contested from 25 February to 13 May 2011. The tournament was the 14th edition of the Vodacom Cup, an annual domestic South African rugby union competition, and was played between the fourteen provincial teams in South A ...

and

2011 Currie Cup First Division The 2011 Currie Cup First Division was contested from 15 July to 14 October 2011. The tournament (known as the Absa Currie Cup First Division for sponsorship reasons) was the second tier of the 73rd season of the Currie Cup, an annual rugby union ...

competitions, weighing in with one try in each competition. He had more game time in 2012, making eighteen appearances during the

Vodacom Cup The Vodacom Cup was an annual rugby union competition in South Africa. Annual Vodacom Cup competitions were played between its inaugural season in 1998 and 2015 and was contested between February and May each year. The Vodacom Cup was the succes ...

and

Currie Cup The Currie Cup is South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition, played each winter and spring (June to October), featuring teams representing either entire provinces or substantial regions within provinces. Although it is the premier ...

competitions. In May 2012, he was named in the South African Barbarians (South) squad that faced during the

2012 England rugby union tour of South Africa In June 2012, the England national rugby union team went on a three-test tour against the South Africa national rugby union team, known colloquially and referred to hereafter as the ''Springboks''. This was one of a series of mid-year tours in ...

Boland Cavaliers

At the end of 2012, Venter moved to

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

-based. Venter featured prominently during the 2013 and 2014

and

competitions.

Chambéry

Venter moved to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

during 2014 to join

Fédérale 1 Le championnat de France de première division fédérale, a.k.a. Fédérale 1, is a French rugby union club competition, the fifth highest level of amateur rugby. The competition has been organised by the Fédération Française de Rugby since 20 ...

side

Chambéry Chambéry (, , ; Arpitan: ''Chambèri'') is the prefecture of the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of eastern France. The population of the commune of Chambéry was 58,917 as of 2019, while the population of the Chambér ...

prior to the 2014–2015 season.

Bordeaux Bègles

In January 2015, he joined Bordeaux Bègles in the French Top 14 as a Medical Joker.

Montauban

On 16 April 2015, Venter signed a permanent contract with French

club

for three seasons (2015 - 2018), prior to the 2015–2016 season. Coaching Venter suffered a career ending injury while playing for Montauban and his career was cut short at the end of 2016. He has since devoted himself to coaching.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Venter, Ben South African rugby union players Living people 1987 births Rugby union players from Johannesburg Rugby union locks Rugby union flankers Boland Cavaliers players Border Bulldogs players Griquas (rugby union) players