Over the past decade, marquee signings from the Southern Hemisphere have been somewhat of a rarity in Welsh rugby but that wasn't always the case.
Up until the end of the Ospreys' so-called 'Galacticos' era, big-name overseas signings were a common occurrence with the likes of Jerry Collins, Marty Holah, Jonah Lomu, Percy Montgomery, Gary Teichmann and Justin Marshall, among others, having all spent a few seasons in the Welsh game.
At one time the serious players saw the Welsh club game, later on the regions, as a credible option when assessing where to take a sojourn overseas, after they'd have enough, or had been pushed out of the international game back home.
READ MORE: WRU finance director set to leave in huge blow to the governing body amid financial crisis
But before the likes of Collins and Marshall came another All Black trailblazer who was as big as they came.
Back in 1996 Frano Botica's move to Llanelli was groundbreaking, and the former All Black can lay claim to the title of Welsh rugby's first marquee player.
To those who followed Welsh rugby in those early years of professionalism Botica is unfairly used as a byword for the financial difficulties the Scarlets faced in the late 1990s which forced the famous club to the brink of bankruptcy.
But Botica was an outrageous talent, one of the very finest playmakers in the world game at that time, who was a member of the All Blacks' 1987 Rugby World Cup-winning squad, while he also played a central role in the 13-a-side game for Wigan Warriors, who many believe were the finest sporting team to come out of the United Kingdom in the 1990s.
Botica had returned to rugby union from Castleford to Orrell, but after only a handful of games in the-then Courage League, Llanelli paid the English club a £60,000 transfer fee, and according to the reports of the time, the former All Black was getting a hefty £200,000-a-year salary, an astronomical amount in those days.
“I was at Castleford in Super League, and I had a few games for Orrell in rugby union when Llanelli came in and paid a huge transfer fee," Botica told WalesOnline.
"Llanelli were very ambitious, and they were a serious player in European club rugby at the time so I decided to join them with their history also appealing.
"I'd been approached by this benefactor of Llanelli. He was telling the club he had a lot of money for signings, and he made such a convincing case to join Llanelli that I decided to take the plunge.
"Llanelli was like New Zealand where everyone just lives and breathes rugby, and I loved that about west Wales.
"I had a really good relationship with Stuart Gallagher, who was a great guy, while Ray Gravell was also a prominent figure there.
"Gareth Jenkins was a tremendous coach, and one of the best motivators in the game.
"It used to make me laugh when I turned up for training, and the score from when Llanelli beat the All Blacks 9-3 in Welsh was still up.
"They were quick to remind me of that and you couldn't miss it.
"I was like 'really, you've still got that score up', it was as if they were trying to rub my face in it!"
The main money man at the club back in those days was Tenby businessman Mel Davies who claimed he was going to pump £3million into the club from an offshore trust over five years, and promised to sign a whole host of world stars.
Botica was his big-name signing, a man to pull in the crowds, who was signed to help Llanelli on their way to European success.
Even legendary New Zealand prop Steve McDowall was rumoured to be joining, but in the end it simply never materialised.
"They got themselves in trouble because that bloke who was supposed to put in millions of pounds didn't pay up," he said.
"I took a monthly salary but the majority of it was going to be paid at the end of each year in a lump sum.
"At the end of the first year I just said I'll wait until the end of the second year.
"The money I was meant to get I didn't get. That piece of work owes me a significant amount of money which I'll never see."
In the end Llanelli were forced to sell Stradey Park to the Welsh Rugby Union for £1,295,410, who in turn mortgaged it back to the club.
Llanelli's saviour came in the form of a businessman from Swansea named Huw Evans, who was appointed as a director in 1997 and ensured the west Walians not only survived but thrived for the majority of the next decade.
"It wasn't Llanelli's fault really," admitted Botica.
"The problem is the new owner who came in (Huw Evans) didn't want to get laden with the debt of the other guy.
"He ended up signing Scott Quinnell for a lot of money and some other big names with the money he was putting in.
"He didn't want to pay the money I was meant to get.
"I didn't want to leave because me and my family loved the club, but I wasn't getting paid.
"I want to reiterate it wasn't the club's fault because they got shafted themselves.
"I think I played reasonably well while I was at Llanelli, and they got their money's worth out of me."
While Botica was only at Llanelli for 18 months he made a big impression both on and off the field. He was an unique talent who took professionalism to a new level, and could win games almost single-handedly.
Despite retaining some bitterness at the way it ended for in west Wales, Botica looks back at his time in Llanelli very fondly, and has great memories of some of the Welsh derbies against Swansea.
But the one game which sticks out in his memory is a Heineken Cup clash against Pau at Stradey Park in 1996 which is undoubtedly one of the dirtiest games in European club rugby history, on a par with the infamous Battle of Brive.
"That was one of the most violent games of rugby I've played," he said.
"They had quite a lot of New Zealanders in their side, and I had played with their fathers and uncles when I was younger back home.
"I actually got headbutted in that game while there were punches being thrown left, right and centre.
"Back then in the early days of the Heineken Cup the French clubs just did what they wanted - if the referee didn't see it, it didn't happen.
"They were really dirty back then, and I mean really bad.
"They used to kick the hell out of you if you got caught at the bottom of a ruck, while there was also the odd kick going in.
"They were also throwing some verbal abuse my way to get under my skin.
"I could understand French so I knew what they were saying, and they said some pretty unpleasant things about my mother.
"But that was rugby in those days, I was experienced enough to cope with it."
There are many who underestimate the effect Botica had on the culture at Stradey Park, with a certain Stephen Jones benefitting greatly from being mentored by the former All Black.
"Stephen Jones was the young fella coming through at 10, and I helped him along the way," recalls Botica.
"He turned out to be a pretty good player. I just tried to help him as much as I could. You could tell he was going to hit the heights.
"He put a lot of work in and was always out on the training pitch for hours practising goal kicking.
"There was some really talented players in that Llanelli side.
"I loved playing with Garan Evans who was a classy winger, and Neil Boobyer, a very good centre who was unlucky not to win more caps for Wales."
In those early days of professionalism, with the amateur ethos still in place, the off-field socials were livelier events than they've become.
While the majority of nights out result in harmless fun, there was one during Botica's era which turned extremely sour.
"I remember one night we went on a night out to Wind Street in Swansea to celebrate the birth of Robin McBryde's child," recalls Botica.
"We went celebrating on a Sunday afternoon, and we ended up getting jumped by some bouncers.
"It was 6pm on a Sunday afternoon, and we were the only ones around.
"We were in a bar having a few quiet drinks.
"Robin was obviously very excited and was dancing on the dancefloor, harmlessly, and then some bouncer came over and punched him in the face.
"We jumped up to go and get the guy but a few of his mates were standing around the corner, and they ended up giving us a massive hiding.
"The guy in question smashed a crate over the head of one of Robin's mates, and he got 37 stitches in his head.
"The guy went to jail for three years. Apparently the same guy had gotten into a punch-up with some Pontypridd players a week before."
Fast forward almost 30 years, and Botica sells real estate on the North Shore in Auckland, while he only recently stopped coaching his local club.
He still retains a keen interest in the game and is particularly excited about the upcoming Rugby World Cup in France. While Ireland are the favourites to lift the William Webb-Ellis Cup, Botica is confident the All Blacks will come out on top.
"You can never write off the All Blacks," warned Botica.
"I think we'll be fine at the World Cup.
"Our Super Rugby teams are playing some bloody good rugby at the moment.
"I think they'll pick the right players in the backs, and I think we've got some really good attacking flair both in the centres and back-three.
"It's not going to be easy but if they get selection right we'll cope with anyone.
"On their day France, Ireland and South Africa can beat anyone.
"The Irish are probably the favourites but a label like that doesn't mean anything when you're playing in the World Cup and I back New Zealand to win it.
"It's sad watching Wales at the moment.
"I think (Warren) Gatland will improve Wales at the World Cup but it looks like they've got some major rebuilding ahead of them."
READ NEXT:
Henry Thomas axed by club for choosing Wales as he reveals call that's turned life upside down
Popular Welsh rugby player becomes title-winning coach at just 32 as he makes waves in England
Wales international Dan Lydiate signs for Dragons in coup for Welsh region
Powerful Welsh star turns down Cardiff contract for move back to rival region
Mass WRU departures in season of utter turmoil and what happens next
