RETIRED ULSTER CAPTAIN Johann Muller has already declined a number of approaches to move into coaching in favour of returning to his native Mossel Bay.
The Springbok hinted that he may yet take up an offer should one come his way, but his first priority will be to bring his Belfast-accented children back to the Southern Cape.
“I ‘ve had a couple of offers to get into coaching,” Muller said after Saturday’s 13 – 9 defeat to Leinster at the RDS.
“At this stage, after 16 years, I need to take a bit of a step away from the game. I will definitely get involved in rugby again, but for the next year or 18 months I want to focus on farm life and family life; enjoying my family, enjoying doing what I love.
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“Then, after that, if I feel if I’ve a bit of extra time, you never know, I might get back into it.”
The the end of the Springbok’s career was confirmed with Ulster’s failure to recover from falling behind after 72 minutes. Having left the field on 59 minutes with his side leading 9 – 3, Muller was making provisions for the final.
“I actually had a protein shake when I came off, because I thought I’d need a bit of recovery for a couple of weeks’ time.”
'It had to be one of us'. James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
It was not to be. Though the recovery shake will do him no harm, the 33-year-old has been forewarned that his diet may need a little re-thinking without the daily grind of training to keep him busy.
Muller has long boasted that he can eat anything that took his fancy without gaining weight, soon he will have to fight the urge or start facing up to some conditioning work if he wants to stop himself becoming a fat farmer down in Mossel Bay.
“We’ve got a couple of ex-players on the coaching staff that have put a bit of weight on after rugby and they tell me the same thing is going to happen to me,” the South African says with a laugh.
James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
“We’ll see how I look this time next year. I’m obviously really excited about the next chapter in my life I’m going to miss rugby and I’m going to miss game days. I’m not going to miss training that much, but I’m definitely going to miss that camaraderie within the dressing room.
“It’s been my life for 16 years and I’ve loved every second of it. There’s absolutely no regrets.”
Muller may make move into coaching after a year back on the farm
RETIRED ULSTER CAPTAIN Johann Muller has already declined a number of approaches to move into coaching in favour of returning to his native Mossel Bay.
The Springbok hinted that he may yet take up an offer should one come his way, but his first priority will be to bring his Belfast-accented children back to the Southern Cape.
“I ‘ve had a couple of offers to get into coaching,” Muller said after Saturday’s 13 – 9 defeat to Leinster at the RDS.
“At this stage, after 16 years, I need to take a bit of a step away from the game. I will definitely get involved in rugby again, but for the next year or 18 months I want to focus on farm life and family life; enjoying my family, enjoying doing what I love.
“Then, after that, if I feel if I’ve a bit of extra time, you never know, I might get back into it.”
The the end of the Springbok’s career was confirmed with Ulster’s failure to recover from falling behind after 72 minutes. Having left the field on 59 minutes with his side leading 9 – 3, Muller was making provisions for the final.
“I actually had a protein shake when I came off, because I thought I’d need a bit of recovery for a couple of weeks’ time.”
It was not to be. Though the recovery shake will do him no harm, the 33-year-old has been forewarned that his diet may need a little re-thinking without the daily grind of training to keep him busy.
Muller has long boasted that he can eat anything that took his fancy without gaining weight, soon he will have to fight the urge or start facing up to some conditioning work if he wants to stop himself becoming a fat farmer down in Mossel Bay.
“We’ve got a couple of ex-players on the coaching staff that have put a bit of weight on after rugby and they tell me the same thing is going to happen to me,” the South African says with a laugh.
“We’ll see how I look this time next year. I’m obviously really excited about the next chapter in my life I’m going to miss rugby and I’m going to miss game days. I’m not going to miss training that much, but I’m definitely going to miss that camaraderie within the dressing room.
“It’s been my life for 16 years and I’ve loved every second of it. There’s absolutely no regrets.”
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All-Ireland Senior HC Guinness PRO12 Falling short Johann Muller Leinster No regrets RDS Retirement Semi-final Ulster