Jaco Coetzee (rugby union, born 1996)

Abraham Jacobus Coetzee (born 10 June 1996) is a South African rugby union player for English Premiership side Bath Rugby. His regular position is number eight.

Jaco Coetzee

Full name	Abraham Jacobus Coetzee
Date of birth	(1996-06-10) 10 June 1996 (age 28)
Place of birth	Pretoria, South Africa
Height	1.89 m (6 ft 2+1⁄2 in)
Weight	108 kg (238 lb; 17 st 0 lb)
School	Glenwood High School
Rugby union career
Position(s) Number eight / Flanker Current team Bath Rugby Youth career 2013–2014 Sharks 2015–2017 Western Province Senior career Years Team Apps (Points) 2017–2021 Stormers 24 (15) 2017–2021 Western Province 36 (80) 2021- Bath 5 (0) Correct as of 31 January 2022 International career Years Team Apps (Points) 2014 South Africa Schools 1 (0) Correct as of 18 April 2018

Rugby career

2013–2014: Youth rugby

Coetzee was born in Pretoria, but grew up in KwaZulu-Natal. He attended Glenwood High School, where he earned selections to represent KwaZulu-Natal at the premier high school rugby union tournament in South Africa, the Under-18 Craven Week in both 2013^[1] and 2014.^[2] He scored one try in the 2013 event, in a 77–14 victory over Border,^[3] and scored three tries in 2014 – two in a 38–27 win over the Pumas^[4] and one in a 15–36 defeat to the Blue Bulls^[5] – in a tournament where he also captained the team. After the tournament, he was named in a South Africa Schools squad,^[6] also named captain of the team.^[7] He captained them to a victory over France in their first match,^[8] but sustained an ankle injury and missed the remaining two matches in the Under-18 International Series.^[9]

2015–2016: Western Province Under-19 and Under-21

After high school, Coetzee moved to Cape Town to join Western Province's academy. He scored four tries in eleven starts for the Western Province U19 team in the 2015 Under-19 Provincial Championship, and three tries in six starts for the Western Province U21 team in the 2016 Under-21 Provincial Championship.

2017: Stormers

At the start of 2017, Coetzee was included in the squad for Western Province's affiliated Super Rugby team, the Stormers.^[10] He was named as a replacement for their third match of the season against the Southern Kings, and he came on in the 70th minute of the match to make his first class and Super Rugby debut.^[11]

2021: Bath Rugby

In February 2021 it was confirmed that Coetzee would join English Premiership Rugby side Bath ahead of the 2021–22 season.^[12]

References

1. "SA Rugby Squad – KwaZulu Natal : 2013 U18 Craven Week". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
2. "SA Rugby Squad – KwaZulu-Natal : 2014 U18 Craven Week". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
3. "SA Rugby Match Centre – Border 14–77 KwaZulu Natal". South African Rugby Union. 13 July 2013. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
4. "SA Rugby Match Centre – Pumas 27–38 KwaZulu-Natal". South African Rugby Union. 16 July 2014. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
5. "SA Rugby Match Centre – KwaZulu-Natal 15–36 Blue Bulls". South African Rugby Union. 19 July 2014. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
6. "SA Rugby Squad – SA Schools : 2014 SA Schools 2014". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
7. "Glenwood's Coetzee to captain SA Schools on Friday". South African Rugby Union. 14 August 2014. Archived from the original on 13 March 2017. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
8. "SA Rugby Match Centre – SA Schools 28–13 France U18". South African Rugby Union. 15 August 2014. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
9. "SA Schools make several changes for Wales U18". South African Rugby Union. 18 August 2014. Archived from the original on 13 March 2017. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
10. "DHL Stormers 2017 squad announced" (Press release). Stormers. 18 February 2017. Archived from the original on 18 February 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
11. "Match Centre: Kings 10-41 Stormers". SANZAAR. 11 March 2017. Retrieved 12 March 2017.
12. "Zach Mercer departs for Montpellier making way for Jaco Coetzee to join Bath Rugby". Bath Rugby. Retrieved 1 February 2021.