by Steven Kitshoff, the latest South African World Cup-winning squad to play his club rugby overseas, seems to have lost the furor over the English players’ move to France.
Kitshoff’s decision to join Ulster after the World Cup brought the number of overseas-based players in the 23-man Springboks squad that beat New Zealand in the final to 16, with their captain Siya Kolisi also now at Racing 92, the provincial champions. of Ireland. Opponent at Kingspan Stadium on Saturday.
Such a free-market selection policy is in stark contrast to the English game, where any players based outside the country have been deemed eligible for selection for the national side since the implementation of a strict overseas selection policy agreed between Rugby Football. and Premiership Rugby in 2011.
That policy is currently being stress-tested like never before given the lucrative appeal of young English players playing in France and Japan, with 21-year-old Henry Arundell the most recently to return to international rugby after signing a new contract extension. with Racing who will keep him in France until 2026.
Kitshoff, who now has two World Cup winners’ medals after also playing in the 2019 tournament, is well placed to see the benefits of playing overseas, having interrupted her 10-year spell with the Stormers by spending two seasons in France with Bordeaux-Bègles, and now starting a new chapter in Belfast.
And while the RFU’s policy is to protect the integrity of the Premiership, the 31-year-old says South Africa have the opposite view, valuing the benefit of sending their best talent overseas.
“The Boks have done well, almost half the boys are doing well playing overseas, learning different styles of rugby, taking that knowledge and bringing it into the Bok camp and everyone grows from there, ” said Kitshoff, who has won 83 caps for South Africa.
“It’s also difficult in South Africa with only four professional teams like Ireland, who can only sign 50 to 55 men, and after 10 years I almost felt like I was taking a young player’s job away from him. He would play three games while I was away with the Boks, and then he would kick out again when I came back.
“So having 200 South Africans playing overseas opens up so much space for our young talent to come through and develop as rugby players, and when they leave to go overseas, the next group of young players come through.
“So I think it gives you more talent to choose from but it also allows guys to leave their family homes, learn new cultures, meet new people, work with new styles of coaches and expand their personal game as well . It has more upside than downside.”
Kitshoff revealed that he consulted Rassie Erasmus, the Springboks’ director of rugby, before signing a three-year contract with Ulster.
“He was very supportive of the idea,” Kitshoff said. “I think he has a good understanding of the Irish clubs having worked in Ireland for a few years in Munster and also Jacques (Nienaber, former South African head coach), now being here with Leinster.”
It is now a well-trodden path from South Africa to Belfast, with verbal recommendations from former players such as Ruan Pienaar, Marcell Coetzee and Duane Vermeulen acting as invaluable recruiting sergeants.
However, it is a two-way street. Kitshoff was recruited by Ulster head coach Dan McFarland to improve his team’s scrummaging ability but also to help develop the next generation of props in the province. Kitshoff has made just three appearances for his new province after a break following an emotional World Cup tour in South Africa.
He was on the losing side every time, and despite being in Ulster’s top five, his scrum became a major concern when they won the Champions Cup in Bath at The Rec. His message is simple: the honeymoon period is over.
“It takes a bit of time, but I see myself as a leader in the scrums and I have years of experience in international rugby and played over 130 games for the Stormers so it’s a big part of my game and I know it is. He hasn’t been great in the last three weeks but I expect him to improve as the season goes on,” he said.
“I always say you can lose a couple of scrum penalties in the resin round but when it comes to the knock out, you want to win all your scrums. I would rather take the shots now and improve and be a dominant scrum.
“I had a good chat with Dan this week. I didn’t want to step on any toes in the first few weeks but we had a really good session on Tuesday and our mood improved a lot. We did a lot more live scrummaging than we had done in the previous three weeks. There are many factors that influence a good scrummaging performance. You have to tick all those boxes to make sure you do that.
“Everyone has been so friendly here, the coaches, players and fans have been amazing, but it’s back to normal now. It’s not about being a double world champion, it’s now about being an Ulta and performing to the best of my ability.”
