Giant 6-foot-10 Cheetahs lock the latest to pack his bags and head for England

There appears to be no end in sight to the exodus of South African players to greener pastures abroad – and the Sale Sharks in particular.

The latest to be packing his bags and heading to England is Cheetahs lock JP du Preez.

The 26-year-old, who stands 6-foot-10 in his socks and weighs in at 122kg, has told OFM Sport that Saturday’s Super Rugby Unlocked clash against Griquas in Bloemfontein will be his final outing for the Cheetahs.

DU PREEZ WILL BE THE 11TH SOUTH AFRICAN AT SALE

Although Du Preez’s move to Sale has yet to be confirmed by the Manchester-based side, he is set to become the 11th South African on the books of the club.

Du Preez, who has also represented the Lions, will join three other Du Preezs – Dan, Jean-Luc and Robert, as well as club captain Jono Ross, Akker van der Merwe, Coenie Oosthuizen, Lood de Jager, Cobus Wiese, Faf de Klerk, Rohan Janse van Rensburg.

The Cheetahs squad has been hard hit by departures in recent times since the confirmation they will no longer form part of the PRO14 tournament going forward.

Apart from Du Preez, the union has also lost the services of Luan de Bruin (Leicester Tigers and Edinburgh), Walt Steenkamp (Bulls), Jasper Wiese (Leicester Tigers), Benhard Janse van Rensburg (NEC Green Rockets, Japan) and Tapiwa Mafura (Pumas).