Western Province confirm Oli Kebble’s move to Glasgow

Western Province have confirmed that Stormers prop Oli Kebble would join Scottish club Glasgow at the end of the year.

Last week it was reported that Kebble was making the move‚ but this was only formally announced on Wednesday.

WP Rugby Group CEO Paul Zacks confirmed that Kebble would leave the union after the 2017 season‚ which includes the Currie Cup.

The 24-year-old former Junior Springbok made his Stormers debut in 2014 and has since earned 34 Super Rugby caps.

The move to Glasgow will not be Kebble’s first time in the UK as he previously studied at Dulwich College in London and was part of the London Irish Academy.

WP director of rugby Gert Smal said that Kebble had grown enormously in his time with the Union.

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“Oli has come a long way in his time with us and leaves us a rounded player who has a lot to offer‚” he said. Kebble‚ son of Springbok prop Guy‚ was a member of the 2012 SA Under-20 team that won the Junior World Championships on home soil.

The younger Kebble appears to be throwing in his lot to become a Scottish international.

Kebble has clearly spotted a loophole in the regulations. In 2012 the Junior Boks became SA Rugby’s designated ‘second’ team‚ which means caps earned at junior international level deny a player the chance of ever playing for another country.

But at the time the regulation was made‚ SA Rugby stipulated that the restrictive condition would only apply if the opposition had also designated their under-20s as the nation’s ‘second’ team.

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None of the five opponents the Junior Boks faced in 2012 had their under-20s as a designated ‘second’ team‚ so Kebble is free to play for Scotland once he has served a three-year residency period.

Current Scotland and Stormers centre Huw Jones will also join Glasgow later this year while flyhalf Brandon Thomson has started a two-month loan spell at the club.

Zacks said Kebble’s role he played for the Union was greatly appreciated.

“We are very grateful for Oli’s contribution and we were certainly not going to stand in the way of what is a great opportunity for him to further his career in Scotland‚” he said.

- TMG Digital/TMG Sport