Devin Oosthuizen
Devin André Oosthuizen (born 28 May 1988) is a South African professional rugby union player, who most recently played with the . His regular position is flanker or number eight. Career

Youth and Varsity Cup rugby

Oosthuizen went to school at HTS John Vorster in Pretoria, where he played for and captained the first team in 2006. He was noticed by the  selectors and he earned a call-up to their Under-18 Craven Week side in the same year. After school, Oosthuizen joined the Blue Bulls Academy and played for the  side in 2007 and for the s in 2008 and 2009. He was also a key player for university side  in the 2009 Varsity Cup competition; he played in all eight of their matches (starting seven of those) as they reached the semi-final of the competition, before losing 14–38 to eventual champions, . Blue Bulls

Oosthuizen made his senior debut for the Blue Bulls playing off the bench in their opening match of the 2010 Vodacom Cup season, a 22–17 victory over defending champions  in Kimberley. After a further substitute appearance in their next match against the , Oosthuizen made his first start of the competition in a match against near-neighbours  in Johannesburg. He marked the occasion by scoring his first senior try, dotting down after thirteen minutes to help his side to a 27–22 victory. He played in all their remaining matches in the pool stages of the competition, with the Blue Bulls winning all seven. He also started their 17–6 victory over  in the quarter-finals, their 33–3 win over the  in the semi-final and in the final, where the Blue Bulls beat the  to win the Vodacom Cup competition for the third time. Eastern Province Kings / Southern Kings

After the Vodacom Cup competition, Oosthuizen was signed by Port Elizabeth-based side the . He made his first Currie Cup appearance during their 2010 Currie Cup First Division campaign, coming on as a substitute in their 18–27 defeat to the  in Welkom. However, that was one of only two defeats during the season as they qualified for the semi-finals in second place. Oosthuizen started their 26–25 semi-final victory over  in Port Elizabeth, as well as the final, which the EP Kings won 16–12 to become First Division champions. He also started both legs of their promotion play-off matches against the  and scored a try in the first leg to help the Kings secure a 36–36 draw in Witbank. However, the Pumas won the return leg in Port Elizabeth 46–28 to ensure the Kings remained in the First Division. Oosthuizen's most prolific try-scoring campaign was the 2011 Vodacom Cup competition. He started six of their matches, scoring a brace of tries on two occasions – in a 51–0 victory over the  in Vanderbijlpark and in a 45–43 victory over the  in Welkom. It proved to be in vain as the Kings lost out on a quarter final spot following a points deduction for fielding ineligible players. Oosthuizen was part of the South African Kings side that played at the 2011 IRB Nations Cup competition in Romania. He played in all three matches as they secured victories over ,  and  to win the competition. Oosthuizen started in a further nine matches (scoring one try against the ) during the 2011 Currie Cup First Division season as they once again reached the final, only to be beaten by the  on this occasion. Oosthuizen appeared in all eight of their matches during the 2012 Vodacom Cup season, with the side managing to reach the quarter-final this time. However, they were eliminated at that stage by the  in Nelspruit in a 19–30 defeat. The same two teams battled it out for the 2012 Currie Cup First Division season, with the EP Kings running out 26–25 winners over the Pumas in Port Elizabeth to be crowned First Division champions for the second time in three years. Oosthuizen played on six occasions for the Kings, including the title decider. He repeated his feat of 2010, once again scoring in the first leg of their promotion play-off series, this time against the  in Bloemfontein. However, it was a mere consolation as the Kings lost the match 14–53. They couldn't turn around the deficit in the second leg, losing 6–16 to remain in the First Division. During 2012, Oosthuizen also played in one match for the Kings against a South African Students selection. With the  entry into Super Rugby in 2013, Oosthuizen was named in the  squad. Despite not being selected for their first few matches, he made his Super Rugby debut in Christchurch, New Zealand, coming on as a substitute in their 20–55 loss to the . He made his first start at this level the following week against the  in Wellington and also started their next match against the  in Canberra, which ended in dramatic fashion as an injury-time Cornell du Preez try followed by a Demetri Catrakilis conversion helped the Kings a secure their first away points in the competition. He again started the following week, as an injury time Catrakilis drop goal saw the Kings win their first match on foreign soil, 30–27 against the  in Melbourne. Oosthuizen made a further four appearances off the bench and started their final match against the  as they finished bottom of the log. He also appeared in both legs of their relegation play-off series against the , with the Kings losing 42–44 on aggregate to lose their Super Rugby status. Oosthuizen returned to domestic action in the 2013 Currie Cup First Division and made nine consecutive appearances as the Kings reached their fourth final in succession. The 2013 saw a reversal of the 2012 result, with the  running out 53–30 victors. However, they were promoted to the Premier Division anyway following a SARU decision to expand the top tier from six teams to eight teams. In June 2014, he was selected in the starting line-up for the  side to face  during a tour match during a 2014 incoming tour. He played just under an hour of the match as the Kings suffered a 12–34 defeat. He made five appearances in the 2014 Currie Cup Premier Division season, including their final match of the season against the  that saw the Kings pick up their only victory in the competition. During his five seasons in Port Elizabeth, Oosthuizen made 58 first class domestic appearances, scoring ten tries. He also appeared three times in the IRB Nations Cup and eleven times in Super Rugby. Free State Cheetahs / Cheetahs

Prior to the 2015 season, he signed a one-year contract with Bloemfontein-based side the . References

South African rugby union players
Eastern Province Elephants players
Southern Kings players
Blue Bulls players
Living people
Afrikaner people
South African people of Dutch descent
1988 births
Rugby union flankers