Kolbe will be leaving the club to join their Top14 rivals, Toulon, in a deal that will be worth about 1.8 million Euro.

The speedster se set to earn an annual salary of R17.5 million at his new club.

The president of the Toulon, Bernard Lemaitre, has confirmed that they have contracted the Bok.

In an interview with the French newspaper, Var-Matin, Lemaitre confirmed that they as a club made an exception to contract that World Cup winner.

“We promised ourselves that we would henceforth be less dependent on internationals because we paid a heavy price last season.

“But this is an exception made for an exceptional player.

“A lot of things are now favourable to Toulon. It is an important operation and not easy to carry out to be in terms of the salary cap.

“It’s a really exceptional opportunity, especially since we needed a game winner in the backline. For a more average player, we would not have done it.”

Kolbe, who is the cousin of 400m world record holder, Wayde van Niekerk, is en route to Australia with the Springboks for their home and away Tests in the Rugby Championship, which will feature two Tests against the Wallabies and two against the All Blacks.

@MorganPiek OFM Sport