Willem Hendrik Jacques "Sheep" du Plessis (born 12 August 1993) is a South African rugby union player. He plays for the in the United Rugby Championship and for the in the Currie Cup. His regular playing positions are flanker or lock.

Career

Youth

After representing the in the 2006 Under-13 Craven Week competition, he moved to Ermelo and subsequently represented the at the 2009 Under-16 Grant Khomo Week and 2011 Under-18 Craven Week tournaments. His performance in the latter tournament led to his selection in the 2011 South African Schools squad. In 2012, he joined the and made twelve appearances for them in the

2012 Under-21 Provincial Championship The 2012 ABSA Under-21 Provincial Championship will be contested from 13 July to 27 October 2012. The tournament will feature the Under-21 players from the fourteen provincial rugby unions in South Africa. Competition Division A There are seven p ...

competition.

Blue Bulls

Du Plessis made his senior debut for the in 2013, starting in the 110–0 thrashing of the . He also started the game the following week in an equally impressive 89–10 victory against the , a match that saw him score his first try, dotting down shortly after half-time. In July 2013, the Blue Bulls announced that he signed a contract extension until 31 October 2015.

Bulls

In July 2013, Du Plessis was named on the bench for the '

Super Rugby Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Building on various Southern Hem ...

match against the and came on as a substitute to make his Bulls debut. Du Plessis was included in the squad for the

2014 Super Rugby season The 2014 Super Rugby season is the fourth season of the 15-team format for the Super Rugby competition involving teams from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. For sponsorship reasons, this competition is known as Asteron Life Super Rugby ...

to resign and made his Super Rugby start in a 31–16 defeat to the in Durban.

Montpellier

Shortly before the

2015 Super Rugby season The 2015 Super Rugby season was the 20th season of Super Rugby and the fifth season featuring an expanded 15-team format. For sponsorship reasons, this competition was known as Asteron Life Super Rugby in Australia, Investec Super Rugby in New ...

, the announced that Du Plessis would leave after the

2015 Currie Cup Premier Division The 2015 Currie Cup Premier Division was the 77th season in the competition since it started in 1889 and was contested from 7 August to 24 October 2015. The tournament (known as the Absa Currie Cup Premier Division for sponsorship reasons) was t ...

to take up a two-year contract 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 ...

Top 14 side .

Return to the Bulls

On 12 April 2021, Du Plessis has left Montpellier early to return to South Africa with the

Bulls Bulls may refer to: *The plural of bull, an adult male bovine *Bulls, New Zealand, a small town in the Rangitikei District Sports *Bucking bull, used in the sport of bull riding *Bulls (rugby union), a South African rugby union franchise operated ...

Representative rugby

Du Plessis was included the South Africa Under-20 squad for the

2013 IRB Junior World Championship The 2013 IRB Junior World Championship was the sixth annual international rugby union competition for Under 20 national teams. The event was organised in France by rugby's governing body, the IRB. A total of twelve nations played in the tournament ...

. In May 2014, Du Plessis was one of eight uncapped players that were called up to a Springbok training camp prior to the

2014 mid-year rugby union tests The 2014 mid-year rugby union internationals (also known as the summer internationals in the Northern Hemisphere) were international rugby union matches mostly played in the Southern Hemisphere during the June international window. These matches ...

Varsity Cup

Du Plessis also played some

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, representing the in the

2013 Varsity Cup The 2013 Varsity Cup was contested from 4 February to 8 April 2013. The tournament (also known as the ''FNB Varsity Cup presented by Steinhoff International'' for sponsorship reasons) was the sixth season of the Varsity Cup, an annual inter-univer ...

competition.

Honours

2015–16 European Rugby Challenge Cup The 2015–16 European Rugby Challenge Cup was the second edition of the European Rugby Challenge Cup, an annual pan-European rugby union competition for professional clubs. It is also the 20th season of the Challenge Cup competition in all forms, ...

: winner. * Currie Cup winner (

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...

)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Du Plessis, Jacques 1993 births Living people People from uPhongolo Local Municipality Afrikaner people South African rugby union players South African expatriate rugby union players in France Blue Bulls players Bulls (rugby union) players Rugby union flankers South Africa Under-20 international rugby union players South African male discus throwers Athletes (track and field) at the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics Youth Olympic gold medalists for South Africa Youth Olympic gold medalists in athletics (track and field) Montpellier Hérault Rugby players Rugby union players from KwaZulu-Natal Bath Rugby players South African expatriate rugby union players in England