GLOUCESTER have announced the signing of South African lock Gerbrandt Grobler from Munster.

The imposing 6ft 7in, 25-year-old lock has moved to Kingsholm after one year at Thomond Park and has previously played in his homeland and for Racing 92 in France's Top 14.

Grobler began his career with Western Province before graduating into the Stormers side in Super Rugby.

He made 20 appearances at the Stade Yves de Manoir in Paris, scoring 5 tries, before a switch to the Pro 14 with Munster.

Director of Rugby David Humphreys said: "Over the past couple of seasons, Gerbrandt has developed into a top quality second row and made a big impression during his time at Racing and Munster. He will bring the benefit of his experience from those top European clubs to Gloucester and his athleticism and skillset are well suited to Gloucester’s style of play.

"We are excited to add another young, dynamic forward to our squad, and he will add a lot of quality and options to our pack."

Grobler spoke of his excitement ahead of his move: "It’s a big competition to come and play in. In South Africa, the English competition is the one that gets aired the most, and gets the most attention, and you get to mix it up with the world’s best from all over.

"The English league gives a huge opportunity to learn, every game is close, a contest until the end. That’s one thing that appeals to me, the opportunity to test yourself week in, week out.

"Gloucester are a club that are on the up, and I want to be part of something with the same ambitions and goals as me. I want to be part of something that is building, and spend my future here.

"The thing that excites me about this move, is joining a team with big ambitions to improve, to be consistent and build something really successful with the squad.

"Working with Johan was a huge part of my decision to come to the club, I had a long talk with him once about life and how you take learnings from things. He proved to me there is hope in life.

"You can get into a dark hole, and he convinced me of a good image, and the way he talks about the way of life, people and this appealed massively to me. I can’t wait to get to work."

Grobler is the fifth player to sign up with the Cherry & Whites ahead of the 2018/19 season, joining compatriots Jaco Kriel and Franco Marais, along with England's Danny Cipriani and Matt Banahan.