USA scrumhalf and former high school All-American and USA U20 captain Ruben de Haas has been named to the Toyota Cheetahs touring squad for the opening rounds of the Pro 14.

De Haas is one of seven scrumhalves in the Cheetahs organization, and that includes capped and age-grade capped South African talents. However, the Cheetahs coaches aren't locked into picking a Springbok or a potential Springbok if someone else is playing well.

De Haas doesn't turn 20 until October,  but his maturity has been a hallmark of his interactions with every team he has played for, and he earned this selection to the travel squad. The travel squad for the Cheetahs is the squad of 26 will be the players who will compete for playing spots against Munster at Thomond Park in Limerick, Ireland September 1, and then the Ospreys in Swansea, Wales on September 8.

His experience with the USA National Team has helped propel de Haas to the upper levels at the Cheetahs.

"I've benefited greatly from my Eagles caps," de Haas told FloRugby. "Being in camp with the Eagles, as well as now with the Cheetahs Pro14 squad, as a young player, you have to learn and adapt quickly. Fortunately, with both these teams, I had world-class players around me and I just try to feed off them as much as I can."