Bulls star Johan Goosen may have reached the end of the road

Fate has rarely been kind to Johan Goosen. The Bulls fly-half limped off just 11 minutes into their United Rugby Championship clash with Cardiff, the victim of yet another knee injury.

This latest setback is far from an isolated incident for the 32-year-old, whose knee issues have plagued his career since the early days. As far back as 2012, during his time with the Baby Boks, injury forced him to cede his place to Handré Pollard. The problems have persisted ever since.

The most recent lay-off followed a knee injury sustained against Stade Français in the Champions Cup on January 18, which sidelined him for two and a half months. He returned on April 5 for the Challenge Cup round of 16 against Bayonne and looked to be finding form again—until this fresh blow in Cardiff.

Bulls director of rugby Jake White, visibly moved, declined to provide details on the extent of the injury. “I feel bad for him,” said White of the versatile playmaker.

Given Goosen’s age and long medical history, talk of another comeback feels increasingly unlikely.

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A brilliant but turbulent career

Should this be the end, it would mark a sad close to the career of one of the most naturally gifted players of his generation—a career that has rarely been short of drama.

Goosen shocked the rugby world in 2016 when he abruptly announced his retirement at just 24, having starred for Racing 92 and helped them win the Top 14 title. That season, he was named the league’s player of the year.

The announcement did not go down well in Paris. In a strongly worded statement published on December 16, 2016, Racing described it as “the improbable decision to end his playing career to return to South Africa on the strength of an alleged hiring for a role as commercial director.”

The club believed it was a manoeuvre by Goosen and his advisers to escape his contract and return to South African rugby.

Eighteen months later, Goosen re-emerged with the Cheetahs before signing with Montpellier, who reportedly paid Racing around €1.5 million to release him from his deal.

His time at Montpellier was again disrupted by injuries, limiting him to just 35 appearances across three seasons before joining the Bulls in 2021.