Former Sale Sharks hooker Akker van der Merwe is set to return to South Africa, where he has been offered a deal to join the United Rugby Championship franchise, the Bulls.
The Springbok hooker, below, said his goodbyes at the Sharks’ Carrington training base last week, and the Bulls want him to replace Bismarck du Plessis, who retired at the end of the season that has just ended.

Blindside reported at the start of the year that he was speaking to the Lions, but the Bulls are now favourites, while Sale have signed veteran Puma Agustín Creevy on a one-year deal to cover.

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