Springbok women’s’ lock, Danelle Lochner has joined the Harlequins women’s team in England.
Lochner is one of many Springbok women who have joined forces with countless teams from abroad and the third South African to sign for the London club.
She joins Bok women’s coach Babalwa Latsha, who’s in her second season as well as Aseza Hele, who is also bound for the Twickenham Stoop.
Lochner, who is also a former Proteas netball player, currently plays for Brackenfell Rugby Club and DHL Western Province. She made her Springbok debut against Canada earlier this year and played in all 10 tests in 2023, scoring two tries.
Welcome Danelle! 🇿🇦
— Harlequins Women 🃏 (@HarlequinsWomen) November 2, 2023
Springbok Lock Danelle Lochner joins Quins 🃏
📲 https://t.co/FzI9kk8eic
📦 Delivered by @DHLRugbyUK #COYQ pic.twitter.com/sztHOEQm4g
Lochner said she could not wait to join the Harlequins.
“I am really grateful for the opportunity that I have been given and super excited about this. To be playing amongst the best players in the world will be a massive opportunity to grow my game and develop as a player. I am hoping to expand my skill set and learn from this new environment.
“It is great that our players are been seen and asked to join those international teams as it will build our depth and experience in the squad and that is great.” said Lochner.
SA Rugby’s High-Performance Manager for Women’s Rugby, Lynne Cantwell, welcomed the move, adding that having players abroad is good because they return and apply those learnings to South Africa’s domestic international game and help accelerate the team’s growth.
Harlequins head coach Amy Turner said Lochner is a naturally talented athlete who has transitioned well from netball into rugby over the past couple of years.
“She’s very dexterous and is a physically imposing player, who fits well with how we want to play the game and the DNA of a club like Harlequins.” Said Turner.
