Günther Janse van Vuuren
# Günther Janse van Vuuren

Günther Janse van Vuuren (born 24 August 1995) is a South African rugby union player for the Cheetahs in the Pro14, the Free State Cheetahs in the Currie Cup and the Free State XV in the Rugby Challenge. His regular position is tighthead prop.

## Rugby career

### 2013: Schoolboy rugby

Janse van Vuuren was born in Pretoria, but attended Hoërskool Monument in Krugersdorp. In 2013, he was selected to represent the Golden Lions at the premier high school rugby union tournament in South Africa, the Under-18 Craven Week, held in Polokwane. He scored a try in their first match against the SWD Eagles on their way to reaching the unofficial final of the tournament, where they lost to Western Province.

### 2014–2016: Free State Cheetahs and CUT Ixias

After finishing high school, Van Vuuren moved to Bloemfontein, where he joined the Free State Cheetahs for the 2014 season. He started ten matches for the Free State U19 team in the 2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship regular season, scoring a try in a 7–9 defeat to the Sharks U19s as Free State finished the season in second spot on the log to secure a semi-final berth. Janse van Vuuren also started in the semi-final, but could not prevent his side losing 22–29 at home to eventual champions Western Province U19.

In the first half of 2015, Van Vuuren was included in the Free State XV squad that participated in the 2015 Vodacom Cup. He made his first class debut in their Southern Section Round Five match against the Border Bulldogs in East London, coming on as a replacement shortly after half-time in a 14–10 victory. He also played off the bench in their final two matches against Western Province and Griquas, as his side finished third in the Southern Section to qualify for the play-offs. A third appearance followed in their quarter-final match against the Blue Bulls, where a 44–21 victory for the side from Pretoria ended the Free State XV's interest in the competition.

In the second half of 2015, Van Vuuren played for the Free State U21 team in the 2015 Under-21 Provincial Championship. He scored one try in their 58–12 victory over Eastern Province U21 en route to a second-place finish on the log. He started nine matches in the competition, the final two being their 27–22 victory over the Sharks U21s in the semi-final, and their 17–52 loss to Western Province U21 in the final.

Van Vuuren started the 2016 season by representing university side CUT Ixias in the 2016 Varsity Cup. He appeared in all seven of their matches in the competition, helping them to two victories and sixth place on the log. He then played some more first class rugby for the Free State XV in the 2016 Currie Cup qualification series, which effectively replaced the Vodacom Cup. He added to his four previous appearances as a replacement by playing off the bench in matches against Namibian side the Welwitschias and the Blue Bulls before making his first senior start in a 31–36 defeat to Western Province in Round Three. He made three more starts and one substitute appearance in the remainder of the season, as his side finished sixth in the fifteen-team competition. In May 2016, the Cheetahs announced that he signed a two-year contract extension, to remain in Bloemfontein until 2018.

Van Vuuren again finished off the season by playing for the Free State U21 team in the 2016 Under-21 Provincial Championship; he played in all seven of their matches, scoring a try against the Sharks U21s as his side again qualified for the title-play-offs, before losing 23–26 to Western Province U21 in the semi-final.

In November 2016, Van Vuuren was named in the Cheetahs Super Rugby team's training squad as the team prepared for the 2017 Super Rugby season.

