Bordeaux-Bègles president Laurent Marti has raised serious doubts about Jean-Luc du Preez's playing future, suggesting the Springbok loose forward should consider retirement due to ongoing concussion problems.
Speaking to Sud Ouest, Marti was blunt about the situation: "I have serious doubts, but there are medical experts for that… If it were my son, I would ask him to stop because I'm very scared. It would be a huge loss for us because he's exactly the kind of player who would have done us a lot of good."
Du Preez joined Bordeaux from Sale Sharks at the start of the season but has managed only three appearances — a Top 14 outing against Racing 92 on January 3, followed by Champions Cup matches against Northampton Saints and Bristol Bears. He has not featured since due to a head injury.
The 30-year-old's career has been defined by misfortune. He missed Bordeaux's early-season matches due to a knee injury sustained on international duty — the same injury that ended his 2025 Test season prematurely after Erasmus had selected him for the Eden Park Test against the All Blacks. Before that, he missed the first Test against Australia for the birth of his child and was ruled out of the following match through illness despite being named to start at number eight.
Du Preez's last Springbok appearance was against Argentina in August 2023. He was not part of the World Cup squad that won in France later that year.
He made his Test debut in 2016 and joined Sale on a permanent basis in 2019 following an initial loan spell.