Springboks squad winners and losers as Rassie Erasmus rewards ‘freakish’ talent and snubs Bulls sensation
Winners and losers from Rassie Erasmus' Springboks squad for the Ireland series.
Rassie Erasmus has named his 39-man squad for the upcoming internationals against Ireland in South Africa, with the Springboks head coach making several interesting decisions.
The Boks have an extensive injury list, including six Rugby World Cup winners who have been ruled out of the Test matches, as well as two uncapped players who were in line for call-ups.
A mighty series awaits as the number one and two in the world lock horns at Loftus Versfeld and Kings Park Stadium in July, and after Andy Farrell named his powerhouse squad for the tour, Erasmus has unveiled a fierce one of his own.
With South Africa bursting at the seams with talented players, there were always going to be several high-profile winners and losers and without further ado, here are our picks.
Winners
Uncapped call-ups
There are four uncapped players in the Springboks squad following Erasmus‘ alterations after the victory over Wales.
Phepsi Buthelezi and Morne van den Berg were both involved in the squad during the lead-up to the Test match against Wales but did not crack the matchday 23. However, they are retained in the 39-man selection, where two more uncapped players join them, including Bulls front-rowers Johan Grobbelaar and Jan-Hendrik Wessels.
Grobbelaar’s call-up has been a long time coming as he has for some time now been the form locally-based hooker outside of Bongi Mbomanbi. It’s not the first time that the powerful Bulls number two has featured in the squad, but he will still be itching to make his long-awaited Test debut after a standout season.
Meanwhile, Wessels’ selection is clearly a long-term project, as he was behind both Grobbelaar and Akker van der Merwe in the Bulls’ pecking order this season at hooker. Another versatile option, Wessels could pack down at hooker or prop for the Springboks and has certainly caught the eye of scrum guru Daan Human.
The 23-year-old is somewhat of a luxury selection as it seems unlikely that he will break into the squad for the July internationals but he will undoubtedly take a lot away from training and rubbing shoulders with the experienced Bok front-rowers.
Thomas du Toit
He just had to be recalled; his form demanded it. After a sensational first season in the Premiership with Bath, Thomas du Toit is back in the Springboks squad after agonisingly missing out on a place for the Rugby World Cup. He is a double act in his ability to play loosehead and tighthead – something he displayed in the Premiership final against Northampton Saints, where he was arguably the best player on the park.
It is likely that he will be seen as more of a loosehead selection for Human this year, particularly with Steven Kitshoff sidelined. Still, he has deserved his recall.
Debutants v Wales
Three of the four Springbok debutants against Wales in the first Test match of the year have been retained in the official squad against Ireland.
Edwill van der Merwe was simply superb at Twickenham Stadium, producing a wonderful Player of the Match performance, and deservedly kept his place despite the return to fitness of Kurt-Lee Arendse and Cheslin Kolbe. He may struggle to keep hold of a starting jersey for the series, but he is certainly not earned his last Test cap this year.
Meanwhile, the Stormers pair of Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Ben-Jason Dixon – who both came off the bench against Wales – have been named in the updated squad.
Dixon’s versatility and graft is clearly valued by the coaching staff as is the case with Feinberg-Mngomezulu, who can slot in at fly-half, centre and full-back.
Feinberg-Mngomezulu oozed class on his Test debut, looked freakishly comfortable with playing international rugby, and is bound to be a long-term member of the squad.
Springboks squad: Siya Kolisi returns as Rassie Erasmus adds two uncapped players for Ireland series
Lukhanyo Am
This is a boost to the already stacked centre stocks, but the return of the world-class Lukhanyo Am is still a fillip for the Springboks. He has struggled with a plethora of injuries lately, which meant he did not feature in a World Cup match last year, but when on song, few are better than the Sharks’ star on either side of the ball. The question now is, can he rediscover that 2019 and 2022 form?
Tony Brown
Erasmus, too, but one looks at the depth and options in the Springbok backline and wonders if Tony Brown knew that he would have this many exciting talents to choose from as he makes his mark on the side’s attack.
Brown has worked with world-class attacking players during his time in New Zealand and Japan, and this role is no different. With a powerful pack in front of the backs, the ex-All Blacks fly-half must be salivating.
Aphelele Fassi
With the experience and quality of Willie le Roux returning to the Springboks’ fold, Aphelele Fassi could well have been dropped from the squad despite a stellar showing at Twickenham.
He did visit the sin bin during the clash against Wales but was resolute under the high ball and had several really nice touches on attack. Erasmus warned after the game that he was not the finished product and still had work to do; thankfully, for Fassi, he will be able to do his work-ons with the Bok squad.
Standby players
Fittingly, our last batch of winners is the players on standby, as they are not quite losers but aren’t really winners in the selection context either.
For example, Bulls stars Elrigh Louw and Wilco Louw will be gutted that they did not crack the 39-man squad after stupendous seasons helping White’s side reach the URC finals. They surely cannot be far away from the official squad and, ultimately, the epitome of fringe players.
It’s an extraordinary position for a selection committee to be in that they are able to omit such players who could be regular starters in many a Test XVs.
Still, Erasmus explained that these players may well get the opportunity after the Ireland series with the one-off Test match against Portugal.
Players on standby: Jean-Luc du Preez, Joseph Dweba, Neethling Fouche, Celimpilo Gumede, Elrigh Louw, Wilco Louw, Ntuthuko Mchunu, Ruben van Heerden, Andre-Hugo Venter, Suleiman Hartzenberg, Jordan Hendrikse, Ethan Hooker, Quan Horn, Siya Masuku
Losers
Jordan Hendrikse
Jordan Hendrikse was the only one of the four debutants against Wales who did not retain his spot in the Springboks squad and was dropped down into the standby list. It was a challenging day at the office for the young fly-half, who still showed plenty of promise in his performance but lacked the final product.
He is still bound to get opportunities going forward.
David Kriel
Outside of Elrigh Louw, David Kriel was probably the Bulls’ best player this season, starring in the centres whether that was with the 12 or 13 jersey on his back. The Springbok coaching staff values versatility highly, but even with his ability to cover in the centres, at wing and at full-back, he has been overlooked.
Unfortunately, the midfield options and the back three are congested, and while he can cover them all, it is hard to argue that he should be in ahead of any of the current squad members.
Cameron Hanekom
Sport can certainly be cruel, and that is the case for Cameron Hanekom, who has been denied a Springbok call-up through injury. The all-action number eight sustained a suspected hamstring injury against Glasgow Warriors in the URC final.
The fact that the Springboks namechecked him in the list of eight unavailable players shows that he was right in the mix for a call-up after a stunning breakthrough season in Pretoria. It’s certainly not the end of the road for the 22-year-old, who has a bright future in Green and Gold, but it is a disappointing setback.
Tyrone Green
While Du Toit’s stunning season in the Premiership has earned him a recall to the Springbok squad, Tyrone Green still waits for his phone to ring.
The Quins flyer was in breathtaking form all season, but again, the back-three depth South Africa currently has makes it incredibly difficult for an uncapped player to break through, particularly while based abroad.
Edwill van der Merwe rose to the occasion and took his chance with both hands, but Green will just have to wait for his opportunity to pounce – even if it ultimately means it is in a white jersey.
Injury list
Hanekom has already been discussed and while Erasmus has named a powerful team, there are notable absentees for the series against Ireland.
World Cup winners Kitshoff, Jean Kleyn, Lood de Jager, Jaden Hendrikse, Canan Moodie and Damian Willemse are all on that list and when fit are all pressing or commanding a starting role in the side.
The eighth player on that list is surprisingly Henco van Wyk, who has seemingly impressed the Bok coaching staff and is in the mix for a potential Test debut once fit. The midfield stocks have been addressed multiple times now and the fact his name appeared on the official team release is an insight into just how highly he is rated by the coaching set-up.
Akker van der Merwe
It is clear that Erasmus is looking to add youth into his front-row with the selections of Grobbelaar and Wessels but Akker van der Merwe can still feel hard done by.
After returning to South Africa to chase a recall to the Bok squad, the hooker enjoyed a fine season in Pretoria but has been beaten to the punch by two of his clubmates. Even then, the ‘Angry Warthog’ is not on the standby list, with the Stormers duo Joseph Dweba and Andre-Hugo Venter preferred.
Ruan Nortje
Another testament to South Africa’s depth is the absence of class lock Ruan Nortje, who is another Bulls player to have a sterling season but has not made the final cut.
Snyman, Eben Etzebeth, Salmaan Moerat, Franco Mostert and Dixon all get the nod ahead of the Bulls skipper for the 39-man squad, while Jean-Luc du Preez and Ruben van Heerden beat him to a place on the standby list.
It’s really a tough spot to be in for one of the form locks in South Africa over the last few seasons.
