SA TEAMS CAN NOW PICK 5 FOREIGN PLAYERS

SA Rugby has amended rule 27, which means provinces can now register up to five foreign players. This is a big increase from the previous limit of two players per province.

The rule stipulates that while provinces can register five foreign players, only three may be included in any matchday team.

According to Saru, foreign players are individuals without South African citizenship.

The Cheetahs will be able to take advantage of this new rule immediately as they’ll now be able to play hooker Louis van der Westhuizen alongside prop Aranos Coetzee and back Tiaan Swanepoel.

The Tshituka brothers were born in the Democratic Republic of Congo, but only recently received their South African ID cards after they got their citizenship approved. This means they now qualify as South African players in provincial terms so the Sharks can now pick two extra foreign players.

This also means that both Manu and Vincent will now be eligible for Springboks selection as well.

Other foreign players already playing for South African teams are Ben Loader from England, and Tapiwa Mafura and Tino Mavesere from Zimbabwe, playing for the Lions and the Sharks, respectively.

Image credit: BBC