NEWS EXTRA
SOUTH AFRICA are likely to suffer a continuing drain of talent unless the South African Rugby Union do a better job of looking after players, believes former Springbok Wynand Olivier.
The Worcester centre, who has 38 caps for the Boks, says standards are slipping not only in the national side but in the country's Super Rugby franchises.
And Olivier believes the way to arrest the issue is for SARU to do more to retain experienced players who can nurture young talent.
South Africa currently lie seventh in World Rugby rankings, beneath Scotland and France, who are fifth and sixth respectively.
“It's sad to see South Africa slumping down in the rankings after years of dominance with New Zealand and Australia, although it's nice to see some of the Northern Hemisphere sides improving and doing well, and raising the standards of rugby,” said Olivier, who was part of the Springboks' 2007 World Cup-winning squad.
“It's not just about the standards of the Boks, it's the standards of Super Rugby in general. Some of the South African sides have been struggling quite a bit and it's sad to see that.
“Loads of experienced guys have left. In the last two to three years there hasn't been a great balance between youth and experience. The only way a youngster can learn apart from being on the pitch is from experienced guys.”
Citing Toulon loose forward Dwayne Vermeulen as an example, Olivier – who joined Worcester in 2015 from Montpellier – said: “It's been quite a struggle for some of the South African sides to keep their players there, especially competing with the pound, the euro and the yen. Over the past couple of years, hundreds of South Africans have left.
“You can't blame a guy for going for the money because it's your livelihood.
“SARU need to look after the players a bit. They just let youngsters go.”
Olivier retains some optimism for the medium term, though: “There is more than enough talent in South Africa to get out of the hole.”
