It seems to many that we are heading inexorably toward the Springboks joining the Six Nations ever since the South African club teams entered the United Rugby Championship and then the European competitions.

Although there are clear advantages for all sides involved in the world champions joining the Six Nations, as demonstrated by the recent events on RugbyPass’s “Boks Office,” the idea is still not widely supported in South Africa.

During the Cape Town SVNS, two centurions of the Springboks, Jean de Villiers and Bryan Habana, appeared on the show with host Hanyani Shimange and double World Cup winner Damian Willemse to discuss the Springboks’ entry into the competition in the northern hemisphere.

Try-scorer Habana, the record for the Springboks, was adamantly opposed to his countrymen moving to a new league, but de Villiers seemed to be a little more indifferent, even though he believes South Africa currently has “the best of both worlds.”

The ex-center questioned, “The thing is, we’re giving our opinion on what we think is best for South Africa, but do they want us there?”

In response, Habana said, “I don’t think so.”

“You also need to ask those questions about the Six Nations, its history, and what it stands for,” De Villiers continued. To what extent does it impact the game’s history and other aspects? With club rugby played in the north and international rugby played in the south in the Rugby Championship, I believe we currently have the best of both worlds. You thus benefit from the best of both worlds.

We’ve already seen the logistical difficulties associated with a complete move to the northern hemisphere, and I believe we would lose a lot of what makes South African rugby unique because we play so much rugby against Australia and Argentina as well as New Zealand. Therefore, moving away from me will be dangerous in that sense. To be brutally honest, though, a lot of the decisions are made more on the basis of finances than rugby in general.

The issue South Africa is currently facing is that their international schedule overlaps with the off-season in the northern hemisphere, which leaves their players with little to no downtime. Nevertheless, Habana suggested that a global calendar be made in order to address this issue rather than the Springboks quitting the Rugby Championship.

The former winger stated, “I don’t think we should move.” “The rugby season must begin in September, the Rugby Championship must be moved to the Six Nations window, and then there must be a global calendar if we truly want rugby to become a global sport.” Jean discussed the financial impact; from what we’ve seen, the money is [higher gesturing].

Shortly after winning the World Rugby men’s player of the year title, All Blacks No. 8 Ardie Savea was named the winner of the Kelvin R Tremain Memorial Player of the Year, the highest honor in New Zealand rugby, at the ASB Rugby Awards.

“Everyone needs to start in September if we are truly going to have a global season. According to Jean, we have the best of both worlds, but these players from South Africa aren’t getting any sleep right now because they are essentially heading into the Rugby Championship, the Champions Cup, a Springbok season, the Rugby Championship, and finally the end-of-year tour, if they make it that far.

De Villiers talked on the impact that the Springboks’ workload will have on the players, which is a major area of concern right now. “We love the game of rugby, regardless of who is watching,” he declared. Right now, we are burning through our assets, particularly when considering things from a South African standpoint. Particularly for those who are performing in SA. We have a problem with that. They should be able to handle it physically, but there are so many mental health problems associated with representing your country, especially in light of the recent events involving Owen Farrell.

From a rugby perspective, I believe we’re just getting started when it comes to mental health, but we really need to take care of these guys. We want the product to be excellent, and in order for the product to be excellent, your best players must be on the field the majority of the time. The Stormers will host reigning champions La Rochelle on Saturday at Cape Town Stadium in an attempt to recover from their opening round loss in the Investec Champions Cup. The World Cup-winning trio of Deon Fourie, Mannie Libbok, and Damian Willemse will be back.