Jono Ross leaves Bulls

Pretoria - The Blue Bulls have granted loose forward Jono Ross an early release from his contract to allow him the opportunity to join French club, Stade Francais.

Ross, 24, will join the Paris-based club on December 1, 2014, the Bulls announced via a media released on Tuesday.

Blue Bulls coach Frans Ludeke admitted that it was a set-back losing a former captain and versatile loose forward, but pointed to the huge stock of talented players that will still be available to the Bulls in 2015.

"Jono provided leadership and played at six, seven and eight for us when our loose forward department was depleted due to injuries, but thanks to our junior structures, the return of injured players and some new signings we have a strong group for next year," said Ludeke.

"We have seen the likes of  Jacques du Plessis, Roelof Smit and Janse van Rensburg breaking into the senior ranks despite being juniors, while Lappies Labuschagne also joined from the Cheetahs. With Springboks Pierre Spies and Arno Botha also returning to action and some proven players already on our books, we will have a very competitive group amongst our loose forwards.

"We want to thank Jono for his contributions and wish him well," concluded Ludeke.