Augustus believes he can bring the power at Saints

Juarno Augustus says he wants to ‘give momentum and stop momentum’ in Saints colours.
Juarno Augustus (picture: Roberto Payne/Northampton Saints)Juarno Augustus (picture: Roberto Payne/Northampton Saints)
Juarno Augustus (picture: Roberto Payne/Northampton Saints)

The 23-year-old is a summer signing from the Stormers and he comes with a fearsome reputation for ball carrying.

Augustus was nicknamed ‘Trokkie’ (the truck) during his time in Super Rugby thanks to his ability to overpower the opposition.

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And Saints would love to see plenty of that kind of raw strength from their new No.8.

“I hope I can be physical,” Augustus said. “I’ll just try my best to be physical because I think that’s the reason they signed me.

“I’ll try to give momentum and stop momentum.

“I’ll give my best and hopefully it works out for me and I can support everyone around me.”

Augustus was named player of the tournament at the 2017 World Rugby Under-20 Championship in Georgia, following an exceptional contribution for South Africa.

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He scored in all five of the Junior Boks’ matches, finishing with a grand total of seven tries (the most by any player).

Augustus, who upon arrival at Saints was said to stand at 6ft 2in tall and weight in at around 116kg, was also involved in the Springbok Green vs Springbok Gold invitational match last October.

He will compete with the likes of Teimana Harrison and Tom Wood for starts in the Saints back row this season.

And he has done some research on the kind of challenge he will face in the Gallagher Premiership.

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“I’ve actually watched a few games from here and some of the guys who played with me at the Stormers play in England,” Augustus said.

“I tried following it but all the games don’t show back at home so I would just watch the games that show on TV.

“I watched Northampton play three times back at home and it made me excited coming here. I watched Bristol at home, Leicester Tigers and Exeter.

“I want to strive to help the team in any way I can and with tight games and derby games I know the team really wants to win so I want to contribute and do my part.

“Hopefully I’ll do good.”