Potgieter was roped in by the Cheetahs on a trial-period and in this time he had to prove his fitness in order to earn a contract.

Potgieter and his agent have accepted an offer of a one-year contract at the Cheetahs, and he will be on the books at the franchise as of 1 March.

The Cheetahs coach said that he wanted Potgieter to prove his fitness and drive before offering a contract.

“His agent and I will conclude the final details of his contract today. In principle, he accepted our offer yesterday and he will be contracted by the Cheetahs as of 1 March.

“I just wanted to ensure that Jacques is here for the right reasons and that he will be fit enough to play for us.

“He is in good physical condition, but his fitness wasn't quite where it had to be because he hasn't played rugby at a higher level in three years.

“We took our time to make sure of this and I am sure of these two aspects now, and that is why he is getting a contract.

“He has won the SuperRugby with the Waratahs, he played for the Bulls, Sharks and Springboks; so he has a lot of experience.

“It's always good to have players who have played elsewhere and bring the experience to us and share it with the younger players such as George Cronjé, Marcell Muller and Gideon van Wyk, who are all training with us.

“They can learn from the experienced players such as Jacques, and as a result, their game will improve a lot quicker. A part of our strategy is to have these youngsters learning from senior players, and this will allow us to promote them to the senior squad.”

Potgieter will not be on debut for the Cheetahs this weekend against the Stormers in Cape Town, however, as a contracted player, he is guaranteed game time in the preparation series.

Meanwhile, the newly contracted flyhalf, Brandon Thomson, will report for duty at the Cheetahs on Monday.

@MorganPiek OFM Sport