Rassie Erasmus likens Springboks rookie to All Blacks great Aaron Smith after nominating him for a URC award
Springboks and Lions scrum-half Morne van den Berg and an inset of head coach Rassie Erasmus.
Rassie Erasmus has likened rookie Springboks scrum-half Morne van den Berg to All Blacks great Aaron Smith.
Van den Berg will make just his third appearance for South Africa on Saturday in the uncapped match against the Barbarians in Cape Town.
This after he earned his Test debut against Portugal last July before earning another cap against the Wallabies in Australia during the Rugby Championship.
Aaron Smith-esque Bok
The 27-year-old has been selected as the starting number nine ahead of double World Cup winners Cobus Reinach and Faf de Klerk while Grant Williams misses the game through injury.
Ahead of the match, Erasmus sang Van den Berg’s praises with the Boks head coach praising his fitness, work-ethic and added that he has been hard to judge fairly due to the Lions’ form in the URC and Challenge Cup.
“He is such a hard worker and such a particular guy in the way he wants to get things right,” the Bok boss said.
“Morne actually reminds me a lot of Aaron Smith, I don’t know if that’s a good or a bad thing but Aaron Smith was a great nine.
“He is exceptionally fit, he was one of the guys who did the best in the fitness test.”
The Bok coaches were required to submit their votes for the SA Rugby URC Player of the Season which was ultimately won by Sacha Feinburg-Mngomezulu but Erasmus revealed that it was the Lions scrum-half who got his vote.
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Nine stocks
He also provided an update on injured Sharks scrum-half Grant Williams, who he expects to be fit for the second game against Italy.
“The Lions team didn’t do too well this season so you couldn’t judge him because they weren’t always winning but his output and what he tried, and how he kept on fighting and how he understands what we want to do, I think that’s nice pressure for the older guys like Faf and Cobus to keep on grinding,” he continued.
“So Grant will be ready for the second Test match against Italy, so this match we see Morne and Cobus and the next game will see one of the two maybe starting with Faf possibly on the bench and then the third one maybe Grant.
“But that is only if we keep momentum. We had to nominate a few URC players of the year and it always goes to the teams that win but one of my nominations was Krappies.
“I think he is a really tidy and sharp player but he only has two Test matches and the one was in the rain against Australia and hopefully Cape Town gives him a better chance this weekend with dry weather.”
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