San Diego Legion signed former Springboks back, Bjorn Basson, for the 2021 Major League Rugby season. The 33-year-old wing/fullback (34 in February) is 6’2″ and 209 lbs.
Bjorn was born in King William’s Town, Eastern Cape, South Africa, and was a Dale College 2005 graduate. He played youth rugby with the Border Bulldogs U19s in 2005-2006 and in 2007 for the Griquas.
He began his Senior rugby career making his debut in the 2008 Vodacom Cup and Currie Cup competitions. He continued with the team through 2010, making 56 appearances and scoring 235 points. In fact, in 2010 he set a record for single-season tries in the Currie Cup Premier Division with 21. He made his Super Rugby debut with the Cheetahs in 2009 and through the 2010 season played 9 times and scored 30 points. His 2010 season earned him the Absa Currie Cup Premier Division Player of the Year honors.
In 2011 he moved to the Super Rugby Bulls, making 86 appearances through 2016 and scoring 145 points. He also played with the Blue Bulls 26 times during that same period and scored 105 points.
Since rugby seasons are different, he played with the Honda Heat from 2015-2016, making 6 appearances and scoring 2 tries. In 2016 he also played for the Blue Bulls XV once.
In 2017 he split his Super Rugby between the Stormers, who he played 6 times and scored 3 tries, and Western Force, playing 6 times and scoring 4 tries. Prior to the 2017-2018 season’s conclusion, he signed a contract with Oyonnax as a medical joker for Matt Hopper and appeared 6 times and scored 2 tries.
During the 2018-2019 season, he played PRO 14 rugby with the Southern Kings, making 17 appearances and scoring 8 tries. He finished 2019 playing 3 times for the Griquas and then for Enisei-STM during the 2019-2020 season in the European Challenge Cup.
National Team
Bjorn played rugby with the Emerging Springboks from 2008-2009, making 5 appearances and scoring a try, and helped the team win the 2008 IRB Nations Cup in Romania.
In 2019 he played for High Veld XV prior to making his Senior Test debut for the Springboks on 5 June 2010 against Wales in Cardiff. The last of his 11 tests were against Argentina at Mendoza on 24 August 2013. During his test career, he scored 3 tries. During four of those matches, he started in The Rugby Championship.
San Diego Legion Comments
Explosive, skillful, and an expert finisher, Bjorn’s finesse, and pace will be perfectly suited for our team and the @usmlr competition. 🏉
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