Scrumhalf Marco Jansen van Vuren has left the Lions to take up a place in the SA Rugby Sevens Academy.

The former Junior Springbok will be available for selection for the opening tournament of the World Rugby Sevens Series in Dubai at the end of November.

The 22-year-old joined the wider Blitzboks training group on Monday and said he is excited by the challenge of adapting to sevens rugby.

‘I have spent some time with coach Marius Schoeman in the sevens set-up when I played for the SA Schools and was struck by the great culture and strong sense of brotherhood at the time,’ Jansen van Vuren said.

‘So when the opportunity came to join the SA Rugby Sevens Academy, I had to take it.’

Blitzboks coach Neil Powell welcomed Jansen van Vuren to the squad.

‘It is always good to have a player committing to our programme,’ Powell said. ‘Marco has played sevens before. He will be playing with the SA Rugby Sevens Academy in a couple of tournaments to find his feet.

‘This pathway was successful for the likes of Ruhan Nel, Sikhumbuzo Notshe, Tim Agaba and Dylan Sage, among others, and there is no reason why Marco cannot follow in their footsteps.’