Droste was born in Pretoria. He was selected to represent the Pretoria-based Blue Bulls as early as primary school level, when he played for them at the 2007 Under-13 Craven Week. He didn't win any call-ups at high school level, but joined the Blue Bulls academy after finishing school.
He made nine starts and two appearances as a replacement in the Blue Bulls U19s' Under-19 Provincial Championship campaign in 2013, appearing both as a lock and a flanker. He scored tries in home victories over Golden Lions U19[2] and Leopards U19[3] as the Blue Bulls won all twelve of their matches during the regular season to finish top of the log,[4] before beating the Leopards in the semi-final[5] and the Golden Lions in the final[6] to secure the title.
At the start of 2016, Droste played some Varsity Shield rugby for UKZN Impi. He started seven of eight matches, scoring a try in a 63–30 victory over TUT Vikings.[12] His team won seven of their eight matches and would have finished joint-top of the log with Wits,[13] but they had 12 points deducted for fielding an ineligible player, therefore missing out on the title play-offs and a shot at promotion to the Varsity Cup.[14]
He made three more first class appearances for the Sharks XV in July 2016 during the Currie Cup qualification series, as they finished in tenth place on the log.[15] He was also included in the Sharks squad for the Currie Cup Premier Division, and he made his debut at that level in a 27–34 defeat to Western Province in Round Five of the competition.[16] He was an unused replacement against the Free State Cheetahs,[17] but made a second appearance in their 53–0 victory over the Eastern Province Kings.[18] Despite being in the top two on the log for the majority of the series, a defeat to the Golden Lions in the final round of the season[19] saw the Sharks drop out of the top four altogether, finishing in fifth place and missing out on a semi-final spot.[20]
