Jimmy_Crouch
Ken Catchpole (46)
South Africa also have a lot more depth and are a lot closer to Europe where the players are playing.
Bringing more players back for test matches is a lot more feasible due to the travel time being less than half and importantly no jetlag due to the similar time zones.
Bringing back far more players is also a lot more feasible at a RWC where everyone gets the long time prepping and playing together. We will see over the next couple of years whether they are as good with that method where the preparation times are shorter.
Economies are entirely different. Maximum a Springbok playing domestically earning is about ZAR R3.75m (AUD $330k).