South African centre wants to use new rugby law to switch allegiance and play for Wales

South Africa Sevens star Dylan Sage has declared he wants to play for Wales and prove himself a late bloomer at Test level like Hadleigh Parkes.

The 30-year-old centre from Cape Town, who currently plays for Montauban in the French ProD2, has a Cardiff-born father and will become eligible for Wales in December under new World Rugby rules.

“If I can reach my goal of playing Test rugby that would be a dream for me,” he told RugbyPass. “That is my goal and running out for Wales would really appeal to me as my father is from Cardiff, and even speaks some Welsh.

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“You have to be very good to play Sevens for South Africa, so now I want to make my mark on the 15-a-side game. I think I’ve got the attributes to play Test rugby and playing rugby in the UK in either the English Premiership or for a Welsh region is something I want to explore.”

Sage’s grandparents Mike and Pat, along with his dad Chris, emigrated to South Africa in the 1980s to run an electronics business. His younger brother Jarryd had a spell with the Dragons, making 23 appearances between 2017 and 2019.

“I still have some family in Wales. Growing up, me and my brother were always told stories of Wales from my dad and my grandparents,” said Dylan. “I was born in South Africa and so I always supported the Springboks, but I do have that affiliation with Wales. I do always want Wales to do well and I like to support them. Watching Wales play was very special.”

Sage made 134 appearances for the Blitzboks South African Sevens side and was part of the squad which won a bronze medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics. He then focused on the 15-a-side game, playing Super Rugby for the Bulls before heading