The Springbok age-grade internationalist joined the club from Top 14 club Montpellier, where he made three league appearances for the senior side and has crossed the whitewash on each occasion.

Prior to making the move to the northern hemisphere, van der Merwe made two appearances for Super Rugby franchise, Blue Bulls, after playing for the club’s U19 and U21 sides.

The 106kg wing also represented South Africa at U20 level in the 2014 Junior World Championship.

Van de Merwe made an immediate impact for the club after making a return from injury in November 2017. The winger set the ground alight, scoring 10 tries in just 18 appearances, winning him the club’s Best Newcomer award at the end of the 2017/18 season.

Van der Merwe’s scoring abilities continued during the 2018/19 season, while his brace of intercepted tries against Glasgow Warriors in December 2018’s 1872 Cup win at BT Murrayfield will live long in the memory of the capital support.

The winger joined Worcester Warriors for a short stint in the English Premiership, before returning to the capital for a second spell in an Edinburgh shirt.