The two-time World Cup-winning Springbok signed a two-year deal at the Cheetahs and it is believed that it will be his last stint at a club or franchise before going into farming full-time.

The addition of Steyn to the Cheetahs squad is a major boost for the central franchise and he is sure to make an impact.

He became the second player to sign at the Cheetahs from Montpellier in France in less than a year, and if the impact made by Ruan Pienaar over the last year is anything to go by, Steyn, will be invaluable.

There are suggestions that another Montpellier Springbok in the form of Johan Goosen may also be back in the colours of the Cheetahs sooner rather than later. This could mean that the Bloemfontein-based side may just field a 9-10-12 combination who all played for Grey College, Montpellier, and the Springboks at one point in their career. On top of that, Goosen and Steyn both played for Racing 92 before moving to Montpellier. At this stage, the addition of Goosen remains speculation.

Speaking to OFM Sport, Steyn backed his decision to join the Cheetahs and he believes that they are already a team that has made an impact in the northern hemisphere, albeit their overseas results do still leave plenty of room for improvement.

“I think that the Cheetahs are already one of the big teams in the PRO14. They have already shown that they can play really good rugby and they are the one team who do play the best brand of rugby in the PRO14.

“I think that the Cheetahs do struggle a bit in the north. It is a different game plan, especially in the winter. In the summer it is really nice to play rugby, even here in France. The ball gets thrown around quite a bit and it is a fast game, but as soon as winter hits a totally different game gets played.

“I think that Free State is one of the big guns in the competition and that the other teams don’t always want to play against the Cheetahs and this makes them one of the bigger teams.”

Steyn will report for duty at the Cheetahs on 1 July, and he will be joined by the two 18-year-olds, George Cronjé (Clermont) and Marcell Muller (Montpellier). 

@MorganPiek OFM Sport