Springboks: Rassie Erasmus releases two leading players from squad to face Wallabies
Springboks boss Rassie Erasmus has decided that Damian de Allende and Pieter-Steph du Toit, inset, are not needed versus Australia
Rassie Erasmus has confirmed two leading Springboks have been released from his squad ahead of next Saturday’s clash with the Wallabies in Perth.
Fresh from sealing their 3-1 victory in Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry against the All Blacks in Baltimore, the Boks are recuperating in Terrigal, a beachside town north of Sydney, after flying into Australia via Dallas.
The All Blacks aren’t back in Test action until October 10, when they face the Wallabies in Auckland, giving Dave Rennie’s side a four-week break between matches.
However, Erasmus and co are still on the road following their exploits in the United States of America, and they will face Les Kiss’ Australia in Perth on September 27 before finally heading home to South Africa and taking a break ahead of the November leg of the Nations Championship.
“Sufficient cover…”
Having capped 30 players across the four-match series against the All Blacks, Erasmus decided that two of his front liners who started every game – Pieter-Steph du Toit and Damian de Allende – could head home early rather than stay with the squad for the one-off Wallabies encounter.
An SA Rugby website story explained that the centurion cap duo had been “released from camp to spend time with their families after a demanding workload during RGR, with sufficient cover within the travelling squad for the match against the Wallabies”.
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The No.1-ranked Springboks will go into the fixture having won seven of the eight Tests in 2026, the last three on the bounce, while the No.7 Wallabies’ record for the year so far is four wins and a draw in seven matches.
The Springboks arrived in Sydney on Wednesday and, after busing up to Terrigal, resumed training on Friday before flying to Perth next Thursday, three days before the match.
Looking ahead to the prospect of facing the Wallabies, Erasmus said: “This is a Test match against a country we have had a rivalry with since I can remember.
“Since David Campese scored that beautiful try, Pieter Hendriks got the opening try against them in Cape Town at the 1995 Rugby World Cup, and since I played against players like George Gregan and Stephen Larkham when the Brumbies were one of the best teams in the world.
“It’s not a tour we want to finish off casually. This is a great country, and the World Cup is being hosted here next year, so it’s massive to be able to play against the World Cup hosts in a big Test match.
“They [Australia] will be really fresh, and they have won four out of five of their recent matches, while we come off a tough series against New Zealand. But RGR and this match have nothing to do with each other. This is a completely different challenge.”
Skipper Siya Kolisi added: “You always adjust for each team, but our core values are going to remain the same. Australia is completely different to New Zealand, so we will have to readjust certain things. It’s going to be a big challenge.
“It’s been a long journey, but it was a great success in the USA, and being here in Australia now and preparing for this game is really important.
“It’s a team we’ve had some tough battles against, but training has been going well this week and it’s good being here in Terrigal. We’ve also seen a lot of South Africans coming out here to support us, which is great.”
