By Reuters
Published: 12:47 GMT, 23 February 2019 | Updated: 12:47 GMT, 23 February 2019
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South Africa's rugby union will scrap a rule that requires overseas-based players to have at least 30 test caps to be eligible for Springboks selection as part of a 'radical' overhaul of its contracting system.
The 30-cap rule was instituted at the start of 2017 in an attempt to stem a growing tide of players turning their back on South Africa to sign more lucrative contracts at clubs in Europe and Japan.
SA Rugby said the rule would be shelved in a new model which will see home-based players get top-up payments from the governing body according to a new ranking system.
South Africa coach Rassie Erasmus has acknowledged the cap system has to change
'We have been agonising over how to keep players in the country since the game went professional more than 20 years ago and the bottom line is that the Rand is too weak and the economy of South African rugby too small to compete,' Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus said in a
