Rassie Erasmus has shed light on the inclusion of lock Nicolaas Janse van Rensburg in the Springbok squad for back-to-back clashes against the All Blacks in the Republic.
The Bok coach on Tuesday named 37 players for the two sold-out Tests against their arch-rivals, at Ellis Park on 31 August and a week later in Cape Town.
With locks Franco Mostert, Lood de Jager and Jean Kleyn still on the injured list, Janse van Rensburg – who played his first and only Test against Argentina in Port Elizabeth in 2021 – earned his first call-up back to the national squad.
“As a team we are in a good position in terms of squad depth with 32 of the 33 players on tour playing against the Wallabies – the only exception was RG Snyman who suffered a foot niggle – and we have full faith in the young players to showcase their talent once again against a completely different opponent in New Zealand,” Erasmus said.
“Adding to that, all these players, with the exception of Nicolaas, were members of our training squad in Pretoria in July and our alignment camps earlier in the year, and they’ve have been regular members of the squad in the last few years, so they understand our systems and should slot in with ease.
“Nicolaas has had a good season with Montpellier and is a capped Springbok, so we are excited to welcome him back into the fold.”
Erasmus delivered good news saying Snyman should be available for selection for the opening Test against the All Blacks after having two weeks to recover from the foot niggle he picked up at a training session in Brisbane.
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“RG should be able to train with us this week again and, if that’s the case, he will be in contention for selection for the Test against New Zealand in Johannesburg,” said Erasmus.
“We are also excited to see what some of the young players can do in these two Tests if they get a run after making a strong impression on the coaches so far this season.
“Similarly to the coaches, they are fully aware that this will be a new challenge in intense matches between two of the biggest rivals in world rugby, but the experienced they gained by facing in Australia in two tough Test matches overseas – one of which was in extreme weather conditions – will set them in good stead going into this series.”
The Boks received a boost after Erasmus welcomed back Steven Kitshoff, Jaden Hendrikse and Canan Moodie from injury, and also recalled fellow World Cup winners Jasper Wiese and Andre Esterhuizen.
“It’s good to have Steven, Jaden and Canan back from injury, along with Jasper and Andre,” Erasmus added.
“They are all World Cup winners, who have delivered quality performances consistently against the top teams in the world, so they’ll bring experience and their unique skill sets to this squad.
Commenting on the decision to select Jan-Hendrik Wessels as his third-choice hooker, Erasmus adds, “Jan-Hendrik a versatile player who enjoys playing both prop and hooker and we also have Marco van Staden who can slot into the middle of the front row if needed, hence we opted against selecting another hooker.
“That said we have drawn up an extensive list of standby players who could slot in at any time if we suffer injuries.”
Photo: Gordon Arons/Gallo Images
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Src: sarugbymag.co.za
