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Stormers' wing Ben Loader is returning to English rugby
By Neil Fissler
Gloucester are bringing Stormers winger Ben Loader back to the Premiership next season now he has put pen to paper on a three-year deal after spending the last two years in Cape Town.
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Cherry and Whites boss George Skivington has seen off Leicester Tigers, Sale Sharks, Bath, Saracens and Harlequins to lure back Loader, who hopes to rekindle his England ambitions at Kingsholm next season.
Reading-born Loader, capped by his country at under-16 and under-18 levels, got a called-up to the senior squad under Eddie Jones and featured in an uncapped match against the Barbarians in 2019.
Loader made the surprise move to the Stormers after the demise of his former club, London Irish, in 2023 and scored six tries in 18 appearances for John Dobson’s side last season.
But a knee operation caused him to miss the first half of this season, but he has started the last two games, a win over Sale Sharks and a defeat over the weekend to Stuart Lancaster’s Racing 92 in the Challenge Cup.
Loader, who can also play full-back and outside centre, enjoyed a very good try-scoring record in his six years with the Exiles. He touched down 24 times in 75 games and was a Premiership Cup Finalist in 2022.
The Stormers hope that Loader, whose younger brother Danny Namaso plays professional football for leading Portuguese outfit Porto, will spark an upturn in their fortunes starting with this weekend’s trip to Leinster.
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He is set to become the second member of Dobson’s squad to confirm that they are moving on at the end of the season, with scrum-half Herschel Jantjies confirming that he is off to France next season after signing for Bayonne.
Dobson is also fighting to keep hold of highly rated inside centre Wandisile Simelane, who is attracting interest from Top 14 outfit Castres, Premiership big guns Bristol Bears and Japanese outfit NEC Green Rockets Tokatsu.
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Seems like a nice guy but good squad player at best. Committed but no real X factor.