Van der Linde represented the at the Under-18 Craven Week tournament in 1998, earning him a call-up to the South African Schools side in the same year. As he progressed through the youth ranks at the Cheetahs, he continued playing for national youth sides, representing the Under-19s in 1999 and the Under-21s in 2000 and 2001.
He was involved in the senior setup at the Cheetahs from 2001, when he was named in their squad for the 2001 Currie Cup competition. His domestic first class debut came in 2002, when he played for the in the 2002 Vodacom Cup competition. He remained with the Free State Cheetahs until 2008, making 45 domestic appearances in the Vodacom Cup and Currie Cup competitions during his spell there. He was a member of the Free State Cheetahs side that won the 2005 Currie Cup, also coming on as a substitute in the final, which the Cheetahs won 29–25 against the at Loftus Versfeld. He also played in five Super Rugby seasons during his spell at the Cheetahs. In 2004 and 2005, the were part of the franchise in the Super 12 competition. Van der Linde played for them during both seasons, making 19 appearances. When the Super 12 expanded to become Super 14, the were one of the two new teams and Van der Linde played for them over the next three seasons, making another 19 appearances.
Leinster
Van der Linde signed a three-year contract with Leinster in late 2008. He represented them in the Celtic League and Heineken Cup competitions between 2008 and 2010, but his spell at Leinster was blighted by a recurrent foot problem. He got an early release from his contract, leaving the side in 2010. He did play for Leinster in the 2010 Celtic League Grand Final, a match they lost 17–12 to the Ospreys.
Return to Free State Cheetahs
He returned to his former side the following his release from Leinster and made four appearances for them during the 2010 Currie Cup Premier Division competition.
Stormers
He joined the Cape Town-based for 2011, making 11 appearances for them during the 2011 Super Rugby season.
Lions
He left the Stormers after the 2011 Super Rugby season to join the. He made his Lions debut in the 2011 Currie Cup Premier Division semi-final match against and also started the final, when the Lions beat the Sharks 42–16 to win the Currie Cup for the first time in 12 years. He also played for the Lions during the 2012 and 2013 seasons, as well as making seven appearances for the in the 2013 Super Rugby season. He left the Lions after his contract expired at the end of 2013.
On 12 December 2013, it was announced that he had signed with London Irish until the end of the 2013–14 season in the Aviva Premiership. However, Van der Linde only made a single appearance for London Irish, playing 20 minutes.
In May 2014, he trained with the in an attempt to get a contract for their 2014 Currie Cup Premier Division campaign. The Eastern Province Rugby Union later confirmed that he got a contract for the until the end of 2014. He made ten appearances for the Eastern Province Kings and were named their scrum coach prior to the 2015 Currie Cup Premier Division.
Montpellier
He joined prior to the 2015–16 Top 14 season on a two-year contract. He made just four appearances for Montpellier before tearing a bicep, which resulted in him deciding to retire from playing rugby. However, he stayed on at Montpellier, where he joined the coaching staff by becoming the scrum coach.
International rugby
He made his debut for the Springboks as a 20-year-old on 16 November 2002 in a match against Scotland at Murrayfield, which South Africa lost 21–6. He earned another cap for South Africa that year, playing England at Twickenham. He next played for the Springboks in 2004, against Ireland in a two test series in South Africa, and also played against the Pacific Islands team in Gosford. He was subsequently named in the Springboks' 2004 Tri Nations Series squad, and played in three matches during the series. He earned another five caps for South Africa during the end-of-year Northern Hemisphere tests. He played 17 times for the Springboks in 2005 including mid-year matches against France and in the 2005 Tri Nations Series. After playing for the Springboks in the 2006 mid-year rugby tests he was named in the 2006 Tri Nations Series squad. On 26 November 2006, he scored his first try in international play against England at Twickenham. He was part of the South African team which won the 2007 Rugby World Cup.
