Springbok assistant coach Mzwandile Stick said the clash against Portugal on Saturday is part of the project to build squad depth for South Africa’s World Cup three-peat bid in 2027.
The Bok lineup for the historic match in Bloemfontein is a ‘B’ team, with only four players retained from last week’s matchday 23 that lost to Ireland at Kings Park.
Salmaan Moerat will take over the captaincy for the first time when he leads a makeshift Bok squad featuring seven uncapped players in a first Test against Portugal at Free State Stadium.
Phepsi Buthelezi, Johan Grobbelaar and Jan-Hendrik Wessels are named in the starting XV, while Andre-Hugo Venter, Ruan Venter, Morne van den Berg and Quan Horn could be in line to make their Test debuts from the bench.
Rassie Erasmus released 16 players from camp on Wednesday before the Rugby Championship squad assembles in Joburg next week. Speaking in a Bok conference on Friday, Stick emphasised that spots are still up for grabs while emphasising the importance of the Portugal match in the “bigger picture”.
“The field is still open for everyone who is in our squad. We have to select a squad of 30 next week for the Rugby Championship and if some of these boys perform tomorrow [Saturday], chances are they might also be a part of that squad,” he told reporters.
MORE: Bok captaincy caught me by surprise! – Moerat
“It’s a very important game for us; the future of our team, if you talk about Project 2027, I think most of those players will be playing tomorrow. They will determine how successful that Project 2027 will be.
“I am excited to see some of those youngsters, especially if you look at a guy like [scrumhalf] Morne van den Berg who comes from the Lions, a team that normally doesn’t get to the playoffs.
“But that boy will pitch up week in, week out and he’s tough, similar to what Faf [de Klerk] offers us. I see a copy and paste of him.”
“I worked with many of the new players at junior level and we need to remember that we have the bigger picture of the 2027 World Cup in mind,” Stick explained.
“Some of the players who played in 2023 may not be around then, so it’s good to build our depth and get some young talented players coming through our structures.”
Os Lobos have emerged as a surprise package in world rugby, fuelled by their remarkable showing at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, and Stick and Moerat expect a tough challenge in Bloem.
“They were one of the standout teams at the World Cup and they performed exceptionally well to beat Fiji,” Moerat said. “Their style of play is very different to other teams – they have elusive loose forwards, great backs, and an outstanding captain. So, we must pitch up.”
Stick added: “Portugal are a strong team and hopefully we can produce a good performance for South Africa and the people of Bloemfontein. We owe it to them, especially after the last match we played here where we lost out narrowly against Wales.”
Photo: Charle Lombard/Gallo Images
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Src: sarugbymag.co.za
