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Nico Johan van der Hoogt (born 19 February 1991) is a South African professional rugby union player who plays for the Leopards in the Currie Cup & The Rugby Challenge in South Africa.[1] He can play as a loose-forward or lock.
| Full name | Nico Johan van der Hoogt | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 19 February 1991 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Pretoria, South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.97 m (6 ft 5+1⁄2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 108 kg (17 st 0 lb; 238 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Hoërskool Ben Vorster, Tzaneen | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| University | University of Johannesburg / University of the Free State | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Career edit
Limpopo edit
As a high school student at Hoërskool Ben Vorster in Tzaneen, Van der Hoogt earned a number of call-ups to represent his local provincial side, the Limpopo Blue Bulls at youth tournaments. In 2007, he represented them at the Under-16 Grant Khomo Week, while he also player in South Africa's premier schools tournament, the Under-18 Craven Week competition, in both 2008 and 2009.
Golden Lions / UJ edit
After finishing school, Van der Hoogt moved to Johannesburg to join the Golden Lions for the 2010 season. He made seven appearances for the Golden Lions U19 side in the 2010 Under-19 Provincial Championship. He was named in their squad for the 2011 Vodacom Cup competition, but failed to make an appearance. He did make two appearances for the Golden Lions U21 side in the 2011 Under-21 Provincial Championship in the latter half of the year though.
Van der Hoogt made his provincial debut in the 2012 Vodacom Cup competition; after a non-appearance from the bench in their match against Griquas,[2] he played off the bench the following week in their match against the Pumas, coming on for the final few minutes in a 33–37 defeat.[3] He made one further appearance, coming on as a replacement in their quarter-final match against Western Province, but once again ending on the losing side as the side from Cape Town ran out 58–34 winners.[4] He was a regular for the Golden Lions U21s during the 2012 Under-21 Provincial Championship, appearing in eleven of their matches.
In 2013, he represented university side UJ in the 2013 Varsity Cup, making six appearances as they reached the Semi-final of the competition.
UFS Shimlas / Griffons edit
Van der Hoogt moved to the Free State in 2014 to represent UFS Shimlas in the 2014 Varsity Cup, making five appearances off the bench as they failed to reach the semi-finals.
Van der Hoogt also joined Welkom-based side the Griffons for the 2014 Currie Cup First Division competition. He made his debut for the Griffons – as well as his first appearance in the Currie Cup competition – by starting their match against the Boland Cavaliers in Wellington and helping them to a 27–19 victory.[5] He started their next match against the Border Bulldogs, with Van der Hoogt proving to be the match winner by scoring a try ten minutes from time in a 37–32 victory.[6] He retained his place in the starting line-up for the remainder of the regular season, helping them to a second-placed finish on the log. He played the full 80 minutes of the semi-final, a 45–43 victory over the SWD Eagles,[7] and also featured for the entirety of the final, helping the Griffons to a 23–21 win over the Falcons in a match played in Welkom,[8] to win their first trophy for six years.[9]
Van der Hoogt played in the Griffons opening match of the 2015 Vodacom Cup, scoring a late consolation try in an 18–57 defeat to the Pumas,[10] before once again joining up with the UFS Shimlas for the 2015 Varsity Cup. He played in two matches for them during the regular season, which saw Shimlas end that stage of the competition unbeaten, winning six matches and drawing their match against UP Tuks. Van der Hoogt also scored a try in their 44–24 victory over defending champions, UCT Ikey Tigers.[11] He also started their semi-final match against the same opposition, helping them to a 21–10 victory to help their reach their first ever final in the competition.[12]