Northern Edition
Select Edition
Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
New Zealand New Zealand
France France

Sam Warburton drives nail into Boks' Six Nations coffin

Sam Warburton and Heyneke Meyer /Getty Images

Former Lions skipper Sam Warburton has let rip on the idea of South Africa joining the Six Nations live on the BBC.

ADVERTISEMENT

Last week the Six Nations issued a statement that there was no current plans for anyone to either leave or join the competition. “Six Nations Rugby, comprising the six unions and federations and CVC, wish to confirm that they are not entertaining any discussion nor developing any plans to add or replace any participating union,” said a statement after speculation mounted following reports in the UK and in South Africa.

However, the discussion has rumbled on, with many not convinced that South Africa joining the competition isn’t something that is being looked at. Warburton addressed the issue, saying ‘absolutely not’ to the idea of Boks accession.

Video Spacer

Six Nations preview with Exeter’s Sam Skinner | RugbyPass Offload | Episode 22

Video Player is loading.
Current Time 0:00
Duration 0:00
Loaded: 0%
Stream Type LIVE
Remaining Time 0:00
 
1x
    • Chapters
    • descriptions off, selected
    • captions off, selected
      Video Spacer

      Six Nations preview with Exeter’s Sam Skinner | RugbyPass Offload | Episode 22

      “I love South Africa and I loved playing against them but absolutely not [when it comes to] the Six Nations,” he told the BBC prior to the Scotland versus France. “I understand there is talk about aligning rugby teams on time zones as opposed to hemispheres, and I can understand that because South Africa is out on its own a little bit.

      “It’s in the same time zone as us and it’s miles away from counterparts in Australia and New Zealand.

      “But the Six Nations, for me, has a responsibility to develop European rugby. It’s Europe, who is the best in Europe? It’s the European championship.

      “Adding South Africa into that makes no sense whatsoever.

      “For me, we need to develop Europe. That’s bringing in promotion and relegation and it would take someone much smarter than me to figure out how it works.

      ADVERTISEMENT

      “But whoever comes bottom of the Six Nations, we should never just drop them straight down because the standard coming up might not be good enough.

      “There should be a play-off in the next available international window.

      “Let’s just say it was Italy and Georgia, if Georgia play Italy in Italy and win, then you know the standard coming up is better.

      “We need to remove the glass ceiling and develop European rugby as a whole. That has got to be a priority.”

      ADVERTISEMENT
      Play Video

      South Africa vs Black Ferns XV | Women's International | Full Match Replay

      Play Video

      Namibia vs United Arab Emirates | Asia/Africa Rugby World Cup Play-off | Full Match Replay

      Play Video

      Lions Share | Episode 5

      Play Video

      Classic Wallabies vs British & Irish Legends | First Match | Full Match Replay

      Play Video

      Did the Lions loosies get away with murder? And revisiting the Springboks lift | Whistle Watch

      Play Video

      The First Test, Visiting The Great Barrier Reef & Poetry with Pierre | Ep 6: The Ultimate Test

      Play Video

      KOKO Show | July 22nd | Full Throttle with Brisbane Test Review and Melbourne Preview

      Play Video

      New Zealand v South Africa | World Rugby U20 Championship | Extended Highlights

      Trending on RugbyPass

      Comments

      4 Comments
      i
      isaac 1251 days ago

      Australia, NZ, Japan, Fiji, Samoa, tonga should be in a competition for Oceania with a second tier competition including cook islands, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Korea and either Papua New Guinea or Solomon or Vanuatu in ther second tier...this will allow for stronger competition and mind you with Tangan and Samoan stars returning could strengthen this competition. Consistent and meaningful competition could see island players opting for the red, blue and white rather than the gold or black. What it means is that the product will be of commercial value and also will allow for a multi layered development rather than how the comps are at the moment

      C
      Cedric 1248 days ago

      The detriment of this idea is the lack of Teir 1 nations in the SH compared to the NH to retain competitiveness on the international arena, Yes the PI nations have now got a foot hold in the Super Rugby Pacific with the support of both AU and NZ but its not going to happen overnight and as for the rest well that’s another story.

      i
      isaac 1251 days ago

      The European competitions (2 tiers) is going well, however there needs a bridging between the top and bottom with a play off type

      i
      isaac 1251 days ago

      South Africa, Namibia, Argentina, UsA, Canada, Uruguay, and either Brazil or Kenya should contest a tournament a tier down from that competition could have Zimbabwe, Uganda, and other emerging american or african nation such as Morocco or Israel (recently launched a professional rugby club.

      Load More Comments

      Join free and tell us what you really think!

      Sign up for free
      ADVERTISEMENT

      Latest Long Reads

      Comments on RugbyPass

      J
      JT 41 minutes ago
      There remains a culture of excuses in Australian rugby

      “The truth is we have little to be self-congratulatory about over here, as I hope Argentina and South Africa prove to us in the coming weeks. Great All Blacks teams learn from their success, this one requires failure.”

      Totally agree with this assessment. I’m a huge ABs fan but I do believe the coaches and the commentators have been delusional about where the ABs stand right now and even more delusional about the standard and quality of their players

      4 Go to comments
      LONG READ
      LONG READ Pocket rockets who lit up Junior Boks’ WC triumph show stars are aligned in SA game Pocket rockets who lit up Junior Boks’ WC triumph show stars are aligned in SA game