Springboks determined to get back into winning groove in Rugby Championship
The Springboks form a huddle during their Rugby Championship Test against the Wallabies in Adelaide in 2022.
Returning to winning ways will be the Springboks’ goal when they reassemble in Pretoria on Wednesday evening, as the team resume their preparations for their final Rugby Championship Test against Argentina in Johannesburg on July 29.
That was the word from Bok head coach Jacques Nienaber after the squad had a well-deserved two-day rest following their return from New Zealand.
Retained the same group of players
Nienaber has retained the same extended group of players for the camp. That includes scrum-half Jaden Hendrikse, who was given time off after a family bereavement, and front-row Gerhard Steenekamp, who was part of the New Zealand touring squad and remains as injury cover for Ox Nche (pectoral muscle injury).
Meanwhile, experienced second-row Eben Etzebeth, who also had a family bereavement, will join the Bok camp on Sunday.
“We have a settled squad, and everyone is determined to get back to action and to bounce back following the result against New Zealand,” said Nienaber.
“We are bitterly disappointed about the defeat, but we’ll take the lessons from that match and implement that as we look forward to our final match in the competition.”
The encounter with Los Pumas at Emirates Airline Park will be the Boks’ final appearance on South African soil in 2023 and Nienaber said there is plenty of excitement within the squad ahead of the upcoming Test, after they played in seven successive sell-out fixtures at home since the start of the 2022 season.
“Playing such a vital match in front of our supporters is always special,” he said.
“This match may not only be the decider of the Castle Lager Rugby Championship, but it’s also the last match we play at home before the World Cup.
“That passionate support almost serves as an extra player for us, so we’d like to appeal to SA’s rugby faithful to come out in their green and gold and make this a memorable send-off for us.”
Nienaber said managing players’ workload ahead of their departure for the Rugby World Cup in France remained a key focus for the Bok management.
“One of the boxes we ticked in the last two weeks was to work on our player load,” he added. “Getting that balance right is going to be vital so that we can peak at the right time this season.
‘Building momentum into the World Cup’
“We have a sizeable squad, and we need to ensure that we give as many players as possible the chance to stake a claim for places in the World Cup squad, while at the same time getting the desired results so that we can build momentum going into the World Cup.
“We have four matches left before the international showpiece and we are still in the race for the Castle Lager Rugby Championship title so we intend getting down to business immediately and making the most of the time we have on and off the training field to get the squad where we would like them to be mentally and physically.”
