First starts for Van den Berg, Nortje as Boks make 10 changes
Morne van den Berg (scrumhalf) and Ruan Nortje (lock) will earn their first Test starts in a Springbok team that shows 10 changes to the starting line-up for the Castle Lager Rugby Championship clash with the Wallabies at the Optus Stadium in Perth on Saturday.
Salmaan Moerat will captain the team from lock while regular captain Siya Kolisi is one of nine players from Saturday’s 33-7 victory who is rotated.
Marco van Staden (loose forward) is promoted from the bench to take Kolisi’s No 6 jersey, while the only players retaining starting places are Cheslin Kolbe (wing), Jesse Kriel (centre), Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (flyhalf), Elrigh Louw (No 8) and Pieter-Steph du Toit, who moves from lock to flanker).
The changes to the team were motivated by Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus’ desire to continue finding the balance between building momentum and expanding squad depth.
“We made it clear from the outset this season that one of our main goals is to build squad depth with an eye on the next Rugby World Cup here in Australia, and we feel there is no better way to test some of the younger players and assess where we are as a group against a top-Tier nation, especially away from home, in this match,” said Erasmus.
“We have a group of about 45 players that are part of our wider squad this season and we’ve seen what most of these players can do. We have full faith in the younger generation of players coming through, and we feel this is the right time to Test them against an Australian outfit that will be desperate to bounce back strongly from last weekend.”
Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Thomas du Toit (both props) and Johan Grobbelaar (hooker) are back in the starting team as the front row after lining up against Portugal in the historic Test in Bloemfontein last month.
Five other players who were members of that emphatic 64-21 victory also join them in Van den Berg, Aphelele Fassi (fullback), Lukhanyo Am (inside centre), Makazole Mapimpi (wing) and Manie Libbok (flyhalf), with the latter starting on the replacements bench showing a traditional split of five forwards and three backs.
Erasmus added: “All of the younger players made a strong impression against Portugal and in the other Tests in which they received an opportunity to showcase their skills, and we believe that their hunger to play, combined with their individual skills will be a fantastic driving force for them to build on the result in Brisbane.”
The rotation also allows time to regenerate for a handful of players who have been regulars in the team this season, with another four Tests left in the Castle Lager Rugby Championship after this weekend – two against New Zealand in Johannesburg and Cape Town, one against Argentina in Santiago and the closing match of the tournament against Los Pumas in Nelspruit.
“We have a big squad, and it’s important to balance some players’ workload while at the same time bringing a few young players into the mix, and this squad allows us to do both,” said Erasmus.
“This also means that every player in this travelling squad will have an opportunity to play. All of the players who have been excluded from the squad have been regulars this season and we feel we’ll benefit in different ways by resting them this week.”
Erasmus opted to rest Kolisi (flanker), Frans Malherbe, Gerhard Steenekamp (both props), Bongi Mbonambi (hooker), Cobus Reinach (scrumhalf), Kurt-Lee Arendse (wing), Damian de Allende (centre) and Willie le Roux (fullback).
Ben-Jason Dixon, who started at flanker last week, meanwhile is nursing a niggle, which has placed him on the rehabilitation list along with RG Snyman, who has been ruled out of contention for selection as he continues to manage the foot niggle that saw Erasmus being forced to make late changes his match-23 last week.
Nortje has recovered from the knee issue that ruled him out of the Brisbane match and returns to the Bok matchday team for the first time since making his Test debut off the bench against Wales in Bloemfontein in 2022.
The Test will mark Moerat’s second as the Springbok skipper after he became the 66th Springboks’ captain against Portugal.
Erasmus named a robust replacements’ bench filled with Rugby World Cup-winners in Malcolm Marx (hooker), Ox Nche, Vincent Koch (both props), Eben Etzebeth (lock), Kwagga Smith (loose forward), Grant Williams (scrumhalf), Libbok and Handre Pollard (flyhalf).
In total, 14 players were retained from the Brisbane match-23, namely Moerat, Van Staden, Pieter-Steph Du Toit, Louw, Kolbe, Kriel, Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Marx, Nche, Koch, Etzebeth, Smith, Williams and Pollard.
Erasmus expected a massive onslaught from the Wallabies on Saturday: “They will be desperate to come back strongly from last week’s defeat and I have no doubt that Joe Schmidt (Australian head coach) will select a team that is fired up and who will give everything to turn things around and get their campaign back on track.
“They are a proud nation and they’ll be highly motivated to continue their impressive home win record against us in Australia, so we’re fully aware of the challenge.
“But we’re also determined to continue building on the changes we’ve made since the end of the 2022 season (in which the Boks have only suffered three defeats in 20 matches) and we have a determined and enthusiastic group of players who also have a lot to play for.
“This is a massive match for us because if we can build on last week, it will give us a good chance to be in the mix for the title which we last won in 2019.”
Springbok team to face Australia in Perth:
15 – Aphelele Fassi (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 5 caps, 10 points (2t)
14 – Cheslin Kolbe (Suntory Sungoliath) – 34 caps, 96 points (15t, 3c, 5p)
13 – Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles) – 72 caps, 80 points (16t)
12 – Lukhanyo Am (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 36 caps, 35 pts (7t)
11 – Makazole Mapimpi (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 43 caps, 150 points (30t)
10 – Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (DHL Stormers) – 5 caps, 25 points (11c, 1p)
9 – Morne van den Berg (Emirates Lions) – 1 cap, O points
8 – Elrigh Louw (Vodacom Bulls) – 5 caps, 0 points
7 – Pieter-Steph du Toit (Toyota Verblitz) – 80 caps, 45 points (9t)
6 – Marco van Staden (Vodacom Bulls) – 21 caps, 0 pts
5 – Ruan Nortje (Vodacom Bulls) – 1 cap, 0 points
4 – Salmaan Moerat (captain, DHL Stormers) – 8 caps, 0 points
3 – Thomas du Toit (Bath) – 19 caps, 0 pts
2 – Johan Grobbelaar (Vodacom Bulls) – 1 cap, 0 points
1 – Jan-Hendrik Wessels (Vodacom Bulls) – 1 cap, 5 points (1t)
Replacements:
16 – Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears) – 68 caps, 85 points (17t)
17 – Ox Nche (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 32 caps, 0 pts
18 – Vincent Koch (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 53 caps, 0 points
19 – Eben Etzebeth (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 123 caps, 30 points (6t)
20 – Kwagga Smith (Shizuoka Blue Revs) – 44 caps, 40 pts (8t)
21 – Grant Williams (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 12 caps, 10 points (2t)
22 – Manie Libbok (DHL Stormers) – 15 caps, 91 pts (1t, 28c, 10p)
23 – Handré Pollard (Leicester Tigers) – 72 caps, 732 points (7t, 98c, 162p, 5dg)
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