South Africa's hopes of including Francois Steyn in their side for the next Tri-Nations rugby test against New Zealand have been scuppered by a tug-of-war with his French club Racing Metro.
The presence of Steyn, who kicked three penalties from his own half in the Springboks' 32-29 win over the All Blacks in Hamilton last September, would have enabled the Springboks to use their favoured pressure-kicking tactics.
The 23-year-old, could have been crucial in helping the South Africans turn round their terrible start to the competition in which they suffered three heavy defeats.
Andy Marinos, the South African Rugby Union's manager of national teams, blamed poor communication by Racing Metro for the decision to withdraw the 23-year-old.
He says Steyn has been injured but SARFU have so far struggled to get clarification on the extent of the injury from Racing Metro.