SA's depth worries Mallett

Cape Town - With Super Rugby set to expand to 18 teams, former Springbok coach Nick Mallett says the lack of depth in South African rugby is worrisome.

Mallett was speaking in the SuperSport studio on Saturday night following a dismal weekend for South African teams.

All four teams competing lost, with the Bulls going down to the Blues in Auckland (23-18), the Sharks losing to the Waratahs in Sydney (33-18), the Lions undone by the Brumbies in Johannesburg (30-20) and the Cheetahs thumped by the Highlanders in Bloemfontein (45-24).

From next year, the Kings will join the other South African franchises in an expanded tournament and Mallett fears there is not enough players of quality currently plying their trade in the country.

Mallett said: “The Lions have played above themselves and have played incredibly well to be where they are. Given the way the Cheetahs performed in this game, how on earth are the Kings going to compete next year?

“Where are they going to find the players? It's a big concern for 2016. We're going to have an extra Super Rugby franchise and we've got 350 professional rugby players competing overseas.”