Northampton Saints have signed South African lock Juan John ‘JJ’ van der Mescht Gardens from French club Stade Francais.
The 26-year-old made 75 appearances for the Top 14 side in his four seasons in Paris.
Van der Mescht, who is a former South Africa Under-20 international, started his career on home soil with the Durban-based Sharks.
It was there that he worked with Northampton scrum coach Jaco Pienaar.
“JJ’s potential is through the roof,” Saints director of rugby Phil Dowson told the club website., external
“As well as his obvious physical attributes, he can really play ball – Jaco joked that JJ is a fly-half trapped in a second-row’s body. He’s also capable of making big plays which can turn matches, like charging down a kick and sprinting in for a 50-metre try when we played them in January, for example.”
