Another high-profile incomer is former All Black No 8 Xavier Rush who will be joining Cardiff Blues. Rush has won eight caps for New Zealand and captained the Auckland Blues last season.
This league aint getting any easier. Still no sign of our open side flanker signing that we need.
Blues sign All Black Rush
Cardiff Blues will find out next week how soon glandular fever victim Xavier Rush might be ready for action.
The New Zealand number eight is moving from the Auckland Blues and a blood test will reveal his state of health.
Cardiff Blues are hoping to register Rush in time for their Heineken Cup campaign which starts on 22 October.
The 27-year-old was due to move to the Arms Park in November, but the Cardiff side's chief executive, Robert Norster, hopes to negotiate an early release.
Rush's illness might actually prove helpful in securing his early release to Wales.
He has been unable to play a major role for Auckland this season and the New Zealand Super 12 side may be receptive to a premature move.
Ideally the Welsh region would like Rush in Cardiff in time for pre-season training and the start of the Celtic League.
Welsh regional rugby's new limit on overseas players is nothing more than a fragile gentlemen's agreement that could collapse at any time.
That was the claim today of one leading regional official as it emerged the latest restriction - revealed a week ago by the Echo as being no more than six foreign players per squad - has been far from laid down in tablets of stone.
Instead, the supposed agreement appears to have created nothing more than a Balkan peace between the Welsh Rugby Union and the Blues, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets.
The key undermining factor is understood to be the lack of legal credibility the new accord would hold if the rules were to be broken.
Having relaxed the previous limit of two foreign players per squad, the WRU is thought to have agreed with the regions:
A new limit of SIX overseas squad members.
No more than FOUR to be named in squads for Celtic League and Powergen Cup matches.
All SIX to be allowed to be named in Heineken Cup encounters.
But doubts are already surfacing over whether the agreement will end up being worth the paper it has been written on.
'If a region encounters injury problems and foreign players are the only ones available, who's to say they will adhere to a limit of six,' said one regional official.
'Surely if it came to a court of law, there would be issues over restraint of trade.
'It's all very well coming up with agreements like this, but you have to make sure they can be enforced.
'If they can't, then what is the point of them in the first place?
'In professional sport, it's difficult to operate these kind of things on goodwill alone when there is so much money at stake.'
The foreign player issue is clearly a thorny one in the Welsh game - and has been for some time.
Even before the game went regional there were widespread concerns about the numbers of overseas players - particularly South Sea Islanders - plying their trade here.
And as the Blues set about targeting Kiwi pair Xavier Rush - now on board with them - and Reuben Thorne, earlier this summer when the old restriction of two applied, other regions looked at making sure they were not allowed any special dispensation.
The Blues argued that they HAD to strengthen their ranks and that there were simply no Welsh players of the required standard available.
Now it remains to be seen whether the new rules will be at all workable.
And as the Blues set about targeting Kiwi pair Xavier Rush - now on board with them - and Reuben Thorne, earlier this summer when the old restriction of two applied, other regions looked at making sure they were not allowed any special dispensation.
The Blues argued that they HAD to strengthen their ranks and that there were simply no Welsh players of the required standard available.
Now it remains to be seen whether the new rules will be at all workable
of course, the same situation applies here to the Irish provinces regarding EU qualification. I guess our overseas players are Steinmetz and Harrison - presuming Feather, Larkin and Stewart now qualify under residency. Boss will be 'Irish'.
Enjoyed the comment about the gentlemans agreement at the end.
Very encouraged to see that the Ospreys and the dragons are following the spirit of the rule and trying to develop young indigenous players first. That is what all the home nations/clubs need to be concentrating on for the long term good of rugby.
