Former Bulls and Kings lock Aston Fortuin has been rewarded for good form in Major League Rugby where he has been named to the GEICO XV.
Fortuin, 24, packs down in the second row for the Utah Warriors and earned his place in the MLR’s team of the week on the back of his contribution in a 39-24 win against the visiting Toronto Arrows in Round 2 of the competition.
The 2017 Varsity Cup champion from Tuks appears to be thriving in the United States’ professional club rugby league where his Utah teammates include former Stormers utility forward Jurie van Vuuren and journeyman centre, Tyler Fisher.
‘Fortuin had a monster match, notably in the aerial game where he had six lineout takes and then proved to be a menace on every lineout for Toronto as he made two lineout steals and disrupted numerous others,’ said a league press release. ‘Around the park he had nine carries for 66 metres, one line break and three offloads.’
He is joined in the GEICO XV by former All Blacks loosehead prop Jamie Mackintosh (Austin Gilgronis) and 121-cap Wallabies finisher Adam Ashley-Cooper of the LA Giltinis.
Fortuin follows in the footsteps of the three South Africans who earned GEICO XV honours in Round 1, where former Stormers loose forward Marno Redelinghuys (Rugby ATL) and Lions lock Rhyno Herbst (Seattle Seawolves) combined in the second row and 61-Test Canadian winger DTH van der Merwe manned the No14 jersey.
