Stormers coach John Dobson has confirmed that Welsh centre Jamie Roberts has decided to stay in the country despite having to renew his visa.

There was talk that Roberts may have to travel back to the United Kingdom to renew his visa, which is set to expire at the end of April.

As a UK citizen, Roberts would not be allowed back into South Africa, due to the country closing its borders to all foreign nationals from countries that are high risk with Covid-19.

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This would mean that the Stormers would be without one of their most experienced players when the season does start again. Roberts has started every game of the 2020 season.

However, Dobson confirmed that the 33-year-old decided to stay and would sort out his visa at a later stage.

‘No, he is not [going back],’ Dobson said. ‘It was on the cards. He had to get his visa renewed. Obviously, if he flew tonight, he would not be able to return. So he has decided to stay.

‘He will [have to renew his visa]. He had to the end of April. He was going to use the fact that we weren’t playing this weekend. He would have had to fly tonight because of our own international travel ban. So he won’t be flying for a while now. If Super Rugby resumes before June, I am sure he will play for us.

‘I know that he had to go and get his visa by the end of April. If he can’t, then he is entitled to return home. In which case, he would not return to us because he would not be allowed. So, it is a fluid situation.’

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