Super Rugby goes on ‘for too long’

UZAIR Cassiem believes more of South Africa’s top stars will turn their back on Super Rugby in favour of the PRO14.

The powerful back rower has joined up with Wayne Pivac’s Scarlets after impressing for Springbok side Cheetahs last term.

Two further South African sides are set to follow Cheetahs and Southern Kings to the Northern Hemisphere next year and Cassiem said: “If there were more South African sides in PRO14 it would be a driving force for more South African players to come to Europe.

“Rugby players like to test themselves and PRO14 provides new boundaries for us South Africans. That’s what I love about the competition. It’s a new environment with new players to play against.

“I think PRO14 is the way forward for South African sides. In Super Rugby the stadiums are getting emptier and emptier even with the big teams playing.

“Super Rugby goes on too long and it shouldn’t have gone to 18 teams. If it was smaller there would be stronger teams meaning games would be far more competitive.”

Cassiem has won eight South Africa caps and scored a try against Wales at Principality Stadium in 2016. The 28-year-old is a like-for-like replacement for Scotland captain John Barclay at No.8 at the Llanelli-based region, but insists he will play his own game with the Scarlets.

He said: “John is a great player whom I respect a lot, but I’m my own player so I’ll bring my own skill set to the game and my own way to manipulate teams.

“I would describe myself as a ball player. If it is a loose game people will see me running and showcasing my skill set. If it’s a tight game against a big French team and I can see the front five need help, I will go in and do all the nitty gritty stuff.

“I like to get stuck in and go to the dark places. I’ve grown into the No.8 position and I’ve learned to love playing there a lot more than blindside flanker.”