Beast may be 'Bok blocked

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The man dubbed 'Beast' by South African rugby fans may not be eligible to play for the Springboks despite the 24-year-old prop having already played 19 tests.

Tendai Mtawarira has been named in South Africa's starting line-up to play France in Toulouse tomorrow morning New Zealand time, but doesn't hold permanent residence or a passport to the republic.

It's believed the Sharks star only has a work permit allowing him to play for his Super 14 franchise.

The Zimbabwean-born, 112kg front-rower played in the Springboks' last test against the All Blacks in Hamilton, but since then has become embroiled in a saga surrounding his eligibility.

Although the IRB's rules allow a player to represent their adopted country after three years of residence (the rule which let former Kiwi Lesley Vainikolo play for England) South Africa's Ministry of Sport and Recreation don't appear to be as willing.

Initially there was doubt whether the player would be able to travel to Europe with his team-mates but South Africa Rugby Union president Oregon Hoskins announced last week the issue had been resolved: "the government has been very helpful in expediting the completion of the necessary protocols and we're all relieved that Beast will be available for selection."

But that statement now looks premature.

Since then it has emerged Sport Minister Makhenkesi Stofile still has not given permission and therefore Beast may be forced to miss tomorrow's test.

The SARU say they are standing by their claims the issue has been resolved and a source close to the South African camp told website rugby365.com would remain with the squad while intense negotiations continue behind the scenes.

Below is the full statement which raises doubts over Mtawarira's eligibility:

SUBJECT: MINISTRY OF SPORT & RECREATION COMMENT ON TENDAI MTAWARIRA's INCLUSION IN THE SOUTH AFRICAN RUGBY TEAM

1. SA Rugby has requested the Minister of Sport & Recreation SA, Rev Dr Makhenkesi Stofile to intervene in securing South African citizenship for Tendai "The Beast" Mtawarira, a Zimbabwean national, who plays professional rugby in South Africa.

2. This request to have the Minister use his position to have the process of securing permanent residence and subsequently, citizenship expedited ahead of the year end tour in Europe, has exposed our Sport administrators' clear disrespect or lack of understanding of our laws.

3. Talented as he is, Tendai, like all foreign nationals plying their trade in South Africa, is bound by the laws of this country. The migration laws of our country are clear on issues relating to permanent residence and citizenship. We expect our sport administrators to understand and respect legislation that regulate their business. None of the athletes, sport codes, or Federations can be bigger than the country.

4. While Tendai is a live wire on the field of play, the question is whether it is, in the first place, justifiable to say he has scarce skills - the rationale that would have enabled him to obtain the current work permit. If we go the route our Rugby administrators are requesting us to take, and facilitate the fast-tracking of Tendai's citizenship, what would this say to all rugby players in our country? We cannot as a Government Department responsible for sport and recreation in this country, afford to insult our players like this.

5. The principle here is clear: Only citizens of our country can play for our National team, irrespective of the sport code. Therefore, no foreign national can play for any of our national teams, no matter how outstanding they may be. If any player in any code is to become a South African citizen, this has to be done within the legal framework of our country.

6. Federations, Provinces and clubs, are more than welcome to approach us for advice on similar issues, instead of trying to slip a player through the legal framework.