Northampton sign South African lock Van der Mescht

Juan John 'JJ' van der Mescht featured against Northampton Saints in the European Champions Cup last season

Northampton Saints have signed South African lock Juan John 'JJ' van der Mescht Gardens from French club Stade Francais.

The 26-year-old made 75 appearances for the Top 14 side in his four seasons in Paris.

Van der Mescht, who is a former South Africa Under-20 international, started his career on home soil with the Durban-based Sharks.

It was there that he worked with Northampton scrum coach Jaco Pienaar.

"JJ's potential is through the roof," Saints director of rugby Phil Dowson told the club website.

"As well as his obvious physical attributes, he can really play ball – Jaco joked that JJ is a fly-half trapped in a second-row's body. He's also capable of making big plays which can turn matches, like charging down a kick and sprinting in for a 50-metre try when we played them in January, for example."

Van der Mescht said that he is "hungry to keep improving" and hopes to now take his "game to the next level".

"I have ambitions to play for the Springboks one day, but I know that starts with improving and performing well for Saints – and that's a challenge I'm really excited about," he said.

Iakopo Mapu leaves Saints

Iakopo Mapu played seven times for Northampton Saints

Saints have also announced the departure of Samoa international Iakopo Mapu, who is moving in the opposite direction to Van der Mescht by joining Stade Francais.

The 27-year-old back-row forward joined Saints in November 2024 as injury cover and played seven times.