MONITORING DESK
\nWASHINGTON
\nSpringbok Flip van der Merwe said Thursday he will retire after Clermont\u2019s Top 14 season ends.
\n\u201cI\u2019m going to stop at the end of the season, when your body tells you stop, you have to know how to listen to it and be honest\u201d, the lock, who turns 34 in June, said.
\nVan der Merwe joined Clermont in 2015 and won the Top 14 with the club in 2017. He will play his 80th match for the club against Perpignan on Saturday.
\nClermont are second in the table and, with three rounds to go, are on course for a bye in the first round of the playoffs. They are also in the European Challenge Cup final and face La Rochelle, in Newcastle on May 10.
\n\u201cWe have to maintain the same level for the exciting end of the season ahead,\u201d said Van der Merwe, who is returning after a five-week ban for a high tackle.
\nBefore hanging up his boots \u201ctwo trophies would be nice,\u201d he said.
\nVan der Merwe played 37 times for South Africa and won a Super Rugby title with the Bulls, \u201cbut I finished my education here,\u201d he said on Thursday.
\nHe said he hoped to stay in Clermont with his family.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
MONITORING DESK WASHINGTON Springbok Flip van der Merwe said Thursday he will retire after Clermont\u2019s Top 14 season ends. \u201cI\u2019m going to stop at the end of the season, when your body tells you stop, you have to know how to listen to it and be honest\u201d, the lock, who turns 34 in June, said. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":62305,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-62281","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\n