The Springbok selectors have been told by the South African Rugby Union (SARU) not to pick prop Tendai Mtawarira after the government ruled the Zimbabwean-born prop ineligible for the national team.
The SARU said in a statement on Saturday the player known as the ‘Beast’, who has won 22 caps, would not represent the Springboks again until he obtained a South African passport.
“SARU received a letter on Friday from deputy sports minister Gert Oosthuizen reaffirming the government’s position that no foreign player can be selected to represent a national team,” the statement said.
Mtawarira made his debut for South Africa in 2008 and gave a man-of-the-match display in the first test against the British and Irish Lions in Durban last year.
The 24-year-old is a legal resident of South Africa and has fulfilled all eligibility criteria of the International Rugby Board. – Reuters