The following from timeslive:-
"Springbok scrumhalf Ruan Pienaar has been forced out of Irish rugby after his club Ulster were blocked from re-signing the veteran for another season under Ireland’s ‘succession policy’ rule.
Ulster wanted to extend Pienaar’s stay beyond the 2016/17 season.
That was not possible and so the current season will be Pienaar’s seventh and final campaign in Belfast. The Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) wants to develop young players in key positions and scrumhalf is deemed one of the essential growth points of Irish rugby. The ‘succession policy’ restricts non-Irish qualified players to one per field position across the provinces (excluding Connacht).
The objective is to develop a minimum of two Irish-qualified players per position playing for the three traditional major provinces‚ which includes Leinster and Munster.
Pienaar‚ who has played 88 Tests for the Springboks and appeared 118 times for Ulster since joining the club in 2010‚ is viewed by the IRFU as an obstacle to an Irish player’s development.
Despite desperate lobbying by Ulster’s hierarchy on Pienaar’s behalf‚ the IRFU‚ under Australian high performance manager David Nucifora‚ would not relent.
“The club and the player were very keen for him to extend his stay in Belfast‚ with Operations Director Bryn Cunningham and Director of Rugby Les Kiss working with the IRFU over the past six months to reach a desirable outcome‚” Ulster said in a statement.
“Unfortunately‚ a contract extension was not possible due to the IRFU’s succession policy.”
Australian Kiss paid tribute to Pienaar: “Ruan has been an outstanding servant to Ulster Rugby over the past six years and he will be a huge loss for us next season‚” Kiss said.
“For me‚ he is a fantastic player‚ but he is an even better person‚ who is much-loved by his teammates‚ the staff and management‚ and the wider rugby community here in Ulster.
"His influence within the squad‚ both on and off the field‚ is truly remarkable; whether that is through match-winning contributions‚ or mentoring the promising players coming through our pathway. Indeed‚ he has played a big part in helping us to develop a large group of talented young backline players who have gone on to represent Ireland in recent years.
"He is a consummate professional and I have absolutely no doubt that he will give
everything to the Ulster cause for the rest of the season. Our hope is that he will one day return to the Province to continue to have a positive impact on rugby in Ulster.”
Commenting on the move‚ Pienaar said: "I am not moving on for a new adventure or for financial reasons - I wanted to stay and I know that Ulster Rugby did everything it could to keep me in Belfast.
“Ulster is special to me and my family now‚ and I would like to thank my wife‚ Monique‚ for coming here to support me and for helping to make it home for us.
"It has been brilliant to see the progress that the organisation has made in recent years‚ particularly with the new facilities here at Kingspan Stadium. The club has given me a lot and I'd like to be in a position to give something back in the future if possible.
"I have many great memories of my time here and I have made some brilliant friends within rugby and outside of it. It is sad that this will be my last season as an Ulster player but I will be doing everything to ensure that we make it a successful campaign."
If there is one thing Irish Rugby learnt from Meyer it is not to keep on selecting has beens and never has beens based on reputation only AND NOT CATER FOR SQUAD AND PLAYER DEVELOPMENT, Meyer has landed SA Rugby in a disastrous situation n and Ireland realises that younger player development and squad development is an essential of rugby standards are to be maintained,
