Ruan Nortjé
South African rugby union player
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ruan Nortjé (born 25 July 1998) is a South African professional rugby union who as of 2025 plays for the Bulls in the United Rugby Championship and the Blue Bulls in the Currie Cup.[1] His regular position is lock.
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| Born | 25 July 1998 Pretoria, South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Height | 2.00 m (6 ft 6+1⁄2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 113 kg (249 lb; 17 st 11 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Die Hoërskool Wonderboom | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| University | University of Pretoria | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Notable relative | Linda Nortje (spouse) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Rugby career
Nortjé grew up in Pretoria and represented his local Blue Bulls at the Under-18 Academy Week in 2016. He joined the Blue Bulls academy after school, and played for their Under-19 team in 2017.[2]
In 2018, Nortjé was included in the South Africa Under-20 squad for the 2018 World Rugby Under 20 Championship.[3] He played in all three of their matches during the pool stage – a 33–27 victory over Georgia,[4] a 30–17 win over Ireland[5] and a 29–46 defeat to France.[6] South Africa qualified for the semi-finals as the runner-up with the best record, but fell short in the semifinal against England, losing 31–32, with Nortjé scoring one of South Africa's tries.[7] He scored another try in their third-place play-off against New Zealand, helping his side to a 40–30 win.[8]
Upon his return to South Africa, he was included in the Bulls squad for their final match of the 2018 Super Rugby season against trans-Jukskei rivals the Lions,[9] and he made his Super Rugby debut by coming on as a second half replacement.[10]
Honours
- Super Rugby Unlocked winner 2020
- Currie Cup winner 2020–21, 2021
- Pro14 Rainbow Cup runner-up 2021
- United Rugby Championship runner-up 2021–22
- United Rugby Championship Ironman award for 2021–22 season
- Named in the 2021–22 and 2023–24 United Rugby Championship Elite XV team
- Bulls URC Player of the Year 2022
- 2025 Rugby Championship winner
Statistics
Test match record
- As of 11 July 2026
International tries
- As of 29 November 2025
| Try | Opposing team | Location | Venue | Competition | Date | Result | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Wales |
Cardiff, Wales | Millennium Stadium | 2025 end-of-year tests | 29 November 2025 | Win | 0–73 |
