Duhan van der Merwe (born ) is a
South African-born
Scottish rugby union player who currently plays for
Edinburgh Rugby
Edinburgh Rugby (formerly Edinburgh Reivers, Edinburgh Gunners) is one of the two professional rugby union teams from Scotland. The club competes in the United Rugby Championship, along with the Glasgow Warriors, its oldest rival. Edinburgh play ...
in the
United Rugby Championship
The United Rugby Championship (URC) is an annual rugby union competition involving professional teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales. The current name was adopted in 2021 when the league expanded to include four South Afr ...
.
Schoolboy rugby
Van der Merwe was born and grew up in
George
George may refer to:
People
* George (given name)
* George (surname)
* George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George
* George Washington, First President of the United States
* George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...
in the
Western Cape
The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...
province of
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 ...
. He attended and played rugby for
Hoërskool Outeniqua, earning several provincial colours by representing the at youth tournaments. In 2011, he represented SWD 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.
The following year, he played for SWD at the premier schoolboy rugby tournament in South Africa, the Under-18
Craven Week
The Craven Week is an annual rugby union tournament organised for schoolboys in the Republic of South Africa. The tournament started in July 1964, and is named after the legendary Springbok rugby union player and coach Dr Danie Craven.
The tou ...
. He scored four tries – two against the
and two against
– at the tournament held in
Port Elizabeth
Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, Sou ...
. He was named in the
South Africa Schools team at the conclusion of the tournament,
and made two starts for them in the Under-18 International Series, helping them to victories over
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 ...
and
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
.
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
. He scored three tries – two against Eastern Province
and one in a victory over the
– and was again included in the South African Schools team.
He scored a try in their 19–14 victory over England in their first match of the 2013 Under-18 International Series,
and followed that up with two tries in their next match against France.
He didn't score in their final match against
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
,
but still finished as the top try scorer in the competition.
He also played
rugby sevens, where he represented South Africa.
Professional rugby
2014–2016 : Youth rugby
After high school, Van der Merwe moved to
Pretoria
Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa.
Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends ...
, where he joined the ' academy for the 2014 season.
Shortly after joining, he was a late call-up to the
South Africa Under-20 squad that participated at the
2014 IRB Junior World Championship
The 2014 IRB Junior World Championship was the seventh annual international rugby union competition for Under 20 national teams. The event was organised in Auckland, New Zealand by rugby's governing body, World Rugby, then known as the Internation ...
in
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
,
replacing
Rohan Janse van Rensburg
Rohan Janse van Rensburg (born 11 September 1994) is a South African professional rugby union player for South African United Rugby Championship side the Sharks. His regular position is inside centre.
Career Youth
Janse van Rensburg represented ...
who picked up an injury in South Africa's 61–5 victory against
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
in the opening round in Pool C.
Van der Merwe was an unused replacement for their 33–24 victory over hosts
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
in their second match,
but started their final pool match, a 21–8 victory over
Samoa
Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono an ...
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,
but was named on the bench for the final against
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and came on as a replacement in the second half, with South Africa losing 20–21
to finish as runners-up in the competition.
He returned to domestic action to play for the team in the
2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship
The 2014 ABSA Under-19 Provincial Championship was a rugby union competition held between the Under-19 players from the fourteen provincial rugby unions in South Africa, plus the sub-union. It was contested from 11 July to 25 October 2014.
Grou ...
. 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.
After scoring a single try in matches against
and ,
he scored two tries against the in a 52–27 win.
Another try in their second meeting against Western Province
was followed by a
hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three.
Origin
The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...
in a 46–24 victory over the Leopards in
Potchefstroom
Potchefstroom (, colloquially known as Potch) is an academic city in the North West Province of South Africa. It hosts the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University. Potchefstroom is on the Mooi Rivier (Afrikaans for "pretty river" ...
.
The helped his side finish top of the log
and make it all the way to the final of the competition before losing to Western Province.
In addition to his appearance for the Under-19 team, he also played one match for the side, in a 24–10 victory over .
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.
He returned to action for the s, making six starts in the
Under-21 Provincial Championship, scoring one try in their 43–10 victory over .
At the start of
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...
, he played
Varsity Cup
Varsity Cup is the collective name for four South African rugby union competitions involving the top rugby playing universities in the country. It was launched in 2008, with eight teams participating in the Varsity Cup competition and each univers ...
rugby with , starting all eight of their matches. He scored tries in defeats to
and
and scored two tries in their 68–25 victory over .
In their final match of the regular season against bottom team , Van der Merwe scored six of his side's eleven tries in a 100–25 victory.
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
and the fourth-highest points scorer.
After the Varsity Cup, Van der Merwe made his domestic first class debut for the in the
2016 Currie Cup qualification
The 2016 Currie Cup qualification series was a South African rugby union competition organised by the South African Rugby Union which was played between 9 April and 23 July 2016. It featured all fourteen South African provincial unions plus the f ...
series. He made an appearance as a replacement in a 14–19 defeat to the ,
and made his first start a week later against the ,
which would be his final action in a Blue Bulls shirt.
2016–2017 : Montpellier
He moved to France in July 2016 to join
Top 14
The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the French National Rugby League, also known by its French initialism o ...
side , signing a youth contract with the team.
He made his debut for the senior team in their
Round 15
Round or rounds may refer to:
Mathematics and science
* The contour of a closed curve or surface with no sharp corners, such as an ellipse, circle, rounded rectangle, cant, or sphere
* Rounding, the shortening of a number to reduce the number ...
match against , replacing
Joffrey Michel
Joffrey Michel (born 4 March 1987 in Arles) is a French rugby union player. His position is fullback or wing and he currently plays for Montpellier in the Top 14.
Honours
*USA Perpignan
**Top 14
The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union ...
.
A recurring hip injury, and difficulties adjusting to the culture and language, meant he gained little game time.
2017–2021 : Edinburgh
Van der Merwe signed a two-year professional contract with Scottish
Pro14
The United Rugby Championship (URC) is an annual rugby union competition involving professional teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales. The current name was adopted in 2021 when the league expanded to include four South Afr ...
side
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
ahead of the 2017-18 season.
He failed his medical due to a long-standing hip injury, but Edinburgh head coach
Richard Cockerill
Richard Cockerill (born 16 December 1970) is an English rugby union coach and former player, he was the national team's interim head coach between Eddie Jones and Steve Borthwick. He played as a hooker, spending the majority of his career at ...
signed him despite this. The injury meant he missed half his first season. However, his impact thereafter was strong. One area of improvement was seeking to get more involved in the game, from his wing position.
2021–2022: Worcester Warriors
On 4 January 2021, it was announced that van der Merwe would move to England to sign for
Worcester Warriors
Worcester Warriors Rugby Football Club is a professional rugby union club, based in Worcester, England, that is currently in Administration (law), administration and which has been suspended and will be relegated from Premiership Rugby, the top ...
in the
Premiership Rugby
Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition. The Premiership has consisted of thirteen clubs since 2021, and is the ...
competition ahead of the 2021-22 season on a long-term deal. Due to the club entering
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative assistant, Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an admini ...
all Warriors players had their contracts terminated on 5 October 2022.
2022–: Return to Edinburgh
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.
International
Scotland
He made his international debut for
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
against
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
on 23 October 2020, scoring a try in the process. He had recently qualified for Scotland by three years of residency during his time at Edinburgh.
He doubled his test try-scoring tally on 14 November, touching down one of Scotland's four tries in
Florence
Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...
during victory over Italy. then adding another in Dublin on 5 December.
Van Der Merwe scored the decisive try in Scotland's victory over
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
in the opening match of the
2021 Six Nations Championship
The 2021 Six Nations Championship (known as the Guinness Six Nations for sponsorship reasons) was the 22nd Six Nations Championship, the annual rugby union competition contested by the national teams of England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland, ...
. The following month he scored a further two tries against
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
in a 52-10 victory. This was followed by another brace in the final match of the championship in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, the second coming in 84th minute of play to secure a dramatic last-gasp win, Scotland's first in
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 ...
since 1999. This brought his tally to eight tries in his first ten test matches.
International tries
British & Irish Lions
In May 2021, Van Der Merwe was selected in the 37-man squad for the
British and Irish Lions
The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The Lions are a test side and most often select players who have already played for their national ...
tour of South Africa.
He took to the field in the opening warmup match against
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
at
Murrayfield
Murrayfield is an affluent area to the west of Edinburgh city centre in Scotland. It is to the east of Corstorphine and north of Balgreen and Roseburn. The A8 road runs east–west through the south of the area. Murrayfield is often conside ...
, scoring a try in the process and becoming Lion #841. 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. He subsequently played the full 80 minutes of both the second and third Tests as well.
Personal life
Van der Merwe is the younger brother of
Akker van der Merwe, also a professional rugby union player who plays at
hooker.
Responding to unverified claims, Duhan confirmed that he was not named after Irish folk musician
Johnny Duhan
Johnny Duhan (born 30 March 1950) started his career as the 15-year-old frontman of the Irish beat group Granny's Intentions. After success in Limerick and Dublin, the band moved to London and was signed to the Deram Records record label. The ...
and his brother Akker was not named after clarinetist
Acker Bilk
Bernard Stanley "Acker" Bilk, (28 January 1929 – 2 November 2014) was a British clarinetist and vocalist known for his breathy, vibrato-rich, lower-register style, and distinctive appearance – of goatee, bowler hat and striped waistc ...
.
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Van der Merwe, Duhan
1995 births
Blue Bulls players
Expatriate rugby union players in France
Living people
Montpellier Hérault Rugby players
Rugby union wings
Scotland international rugby union players
South African expatriate rugby union players
South African expatriate sportspeople in France
South African rugby union players
South Africa Under-20 international rugby union players
Rugby union players from Pretoria
University of Pretoria alumni
Edinburgh Rugby players
Worcester Warriors players
British & Irish Lions rugby union players from South Africa
British & Irish Lions rugby union players from Scotland
Rugby union players from the Western Cape
Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom
Expatriate rugby union players in Scotland
South African expatriate sportspeople in Scotland