‘Until the wheels fall off’: Marcell Coetzee still has what it takes

Experienced loose forward Marcell Coetzee has not lost his touch.

He followed up his 50th cap attained at a third different club with a man-of-the-match performance against the Lions in their United Rugby Championship (URC) derby last weekend.

The 33-year-old Springbok had 50 caps at the Sharks and Ulster respectively before he moved to the Bulls in 2021.

He has since become a mainstay at the Pretoria side and still proves he can keep up with other loose forward, Springboks Cameron Hanekom, Marco van Staden and Nizaam Carr.

Coetzee helped end a four-game losing streak for the Bulls in his half-century for the franchise. This was in their Champions Cup match against Stade Français, which the Bulls won 48–7.

Coetzee’s ‘moment of reflection’

After the game, Coetzee had the opportunity to bask in the win with his wife and baby on the Loftus field.

“You can’t put that into words, it’s just an extremely proud moment, to reflect and see how far you’ve come as a player,” Coetzee said afterwards.

“As a guy coming from Port Natal [Durban] you always have dreams to play rugby and you never know where the roads are going to take you and it took me to three franchises, getting over 50 caps for them, and Bok caps as well.

“It was a moment of reflection and gratefulness.”

He said he had supported the Bulls since he was young and to enjoy the milestone with his family after a win was “very special”.

“It was one of my goals with the Bulls. I wanted to win a trophy with the franchise and wanted to achieve more than 50 caps. Now I must sit back and see where I can add value as a player.”

He said this involves working off the field to develop young players such as Hanekom, so that he leaves the team in a better place than he found it.

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‘Keep pushing for a position until the wheels fall off’

However, Coetzee said he will never stop pushing himself on the field.

“On the field you still exert your dominance and keep pushing for a position until the wheels fall off, I suppose,” Coetzee smiled.

Though his days playing for the Springboks appear to be over with his 17th and last cap coming in July 2022, Coetzee is still making the local rugby scene his own.

He rose to the occasion in the much-hyped Jukskei derby between the Bulls and the Lion in the URC.

He was in the top two for both carries and tackles, and scored a try as well to earn man-of-the-match.

Upon receiving his medal he directed attention away from himself, thanking and congratulating his team while giving credit to the Lions for never giving up.