Springboks squad winners and losers as Rassie Erasmus shocks with back-row calls and fresh snubs

Springboks boss Rassie Erasmus has made a few surprising selections in naming his squad for the upcoming Rugby Championship, here are our winners and losers.

Following a rather successful mid-year international window that saw victories over Wales, Ireland and Portugal as well as defeat to the Irish, Erasmus handed out several Test debuts and managed to test his depth against Os Lobos.

Several players certainly put their hand up, which is reflected in the squad named for the opening two Tests against Australia before returning home to tackle the All Blacks.

However, the internationals also saw the Springboks‘ injury list increase which has also opened the door for fringe players.

Here are our winners and losers from the 33-man squad named.

Winners

Elrigh Louw

At the start of the mid-year internationals, we listed Bulls star Elrigh Louw as a loser after he missed out on selection for the Tests against Ireland with Kwagga Smith and Evan Roos favoured as the number eight options.

He was however placed on the standby list and got the call-up for the Portugal Test match and clearly made the most of his opportunity. So much so that his 33-minute cameo against Os Lobos catapulted him ahead of Evan Roos in the pecking order with the latter playing 101 minutes between the Tests against Wales and Portugal.

Jasper Wiese looked the first in line to fill Duane Vermeulen’s boots after the Springboks legend retired but his red card in his final game for Leicester meant that the other fringe number eights got a chance to stake their claim. Kwagga Smith impressed on the whole but did have his soft moments while Louw now heads to Australia off the back of a strong showing in Bloemfontein with the chance of starting a Test match for the Boks.

Ruan Nortje

Staying with the Bulls’ players and much like Louw, Ruan Nortje was not included in the first Springboks squads of the year. The work-horse Bulls skipper wasn’t even placed on the standby list but has now jumped the queue to board the plane Down Under.

With Franco Mostert joining Lood de Jager on the injury list, the Springboks did need more cover in the number five jumper – the left lock role – particularly after the wobbles at lineout time against Ireland when RG Snyman was calling the set-piece. While Nortje brings an immense work-rate around the park, one of his biggest attributes is his ability to call the lineout and of the locally-based players, he is probably the best of the lot.

Jan-Hendrik Wessels

Jan-Hendrik Wessels is clearly a player whom the Springboks coaching staff see plenty of potential in as he continues his involvement with the squad. His versatility is a major plus point for the Boks and it will be required as Malcolm Marx is set to miss the opening game on tour meaning that Wessels will not only provide an option at loosehead prop but probably be the third-choice hooker for the first game against the Wallabies.

Still, he really impressed with his athleticism around the park against Portugal and could well get a second cap against the Wallabies through his form in Green and Gold.

Johan Grobbelaar

One of the seven debutants against Portugal and the one we ranked as having the best first cap for the Springboks in Bloemfontein, Johan Grobbelaar now looks primed to add to his long-awaited first cap and doing so in Australia.

The Bulls hooker has been the form number two locally for some time now and was superb in his first outing for the Boks. He is a like-for-like replacement for Marx with his ability at the breakdown and resolute defence among his strengths, and looks to have firmly cemented himself as the Boks’ third-choice hooker behind Marx and Bongi Mbonambi.

Morne van den Berg

The injuries at scrum-half are racking up for the Springboks but Morne van den Berg is yet another who has made the most of his involvement with the side particularly on debut last week in Bloemfontein.

Many fans wanted his Lions team-mate Sanele Nohamba in the squad ahead of the newly-capped Bok but he may well have eased concerns after a strong showing in tandem with Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu.

There is very much a Faf de Klerk-esque feel to his style of play and overall game which will serve him well in the eyes of the selectors and he is just another who is making the most of his chance, particularly with so many of the classy number nines sidelined.

Ben-Jason Dixon

A somewhat surprising debutant at Twickenham but the coaching staff has clearly taken a liking to Ben-Jason Dixon and rightly so. It is some going to be compared to Pieter-Steph du Toit so early in a Test career but so far Dixon has earned it with his sheer work-rate and physicality around the park.

He earned his first start against Portugal and was rather unlucky not to collect the man of the match award – that’s no slight on Snyman – as he produced a thunderous performance.

Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu

After stellar showings in all four of his Test caps this year there was no doubt that Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu would be included in the Rugby Championship squad but it is just another step in what promises to be a glittering career.

Erasmus spoke highly of the rookie after his performance against Portugal and he gets another crack at applying the pressure on the more senior Boks Handre Pollard and Manie Libbok for the starting fly-half role.

Rassie Erasmus names powerful Springboks squad with one surprise for Rugby Championship

With Damian Willemse sidelined, the Springboks also needed a versatile back to effectively cover 10,12 and 15 and the 22-year-old has done so sublimely and with little fuss.

Rassie Erasmus

Often the Bok boss is accused of favouritism and not selecting on form which comes with the job but this time it is not the case. Erasmus has made some tough decisions to drop the likes of Trevor Nyakane and Roos and the squad is better for it.

The 2027 project is well under way and while he and his coaching team would have had certain ideas about players heading into the international season, it’s good to see that they were not set in stone and they can be reactive changes.

Losers

Evan Roos

As mentioned above, the Stormers star got over 100 minutes during the mid-year internationals and after missing out on the initial Rugby Championship squad, it has been deemed that he did not make the most of it.

A powerful runner, Roos has really stepped up his game this past season and his discipline looks to be improving but when you get the chance in the Green and Gold, you have to take it and in the coaches’ eyes, Louw and Smith were better.

Trevor Nyakane

At 35 years old, Trevor Nyakane is well aware that his days in the Springbok jersey are number as his career comes to a close. A titan in the front row for the Boks winning two World Cups and a Lions Series, Nyakane has been pivotal for the side with his ability to play both sides of the scrum.

However, the Boks need to move on and get more caps into the likes of Thomas du Toit and Gerhard Steenekamp and sadly that means that Nyakane will be less and less involved with the side as time goes on.

Phepsi Buthelezi

After spending the end of June and the whole of July with the squad, Phepsi Buthelezi returns to the Sharks a Springbok after strong showing on debut against Portugal.

It’s tough going vying for a role in the squad up against a double World Cup-winning captain and this is not the last we have seen of Buthelezi in Green and Gold.

Ultimately, he will feel disappointed particularly with his ability to cover the openside flank and number eight but he can’t have been too far off.

Andre-Hugo Venter

Another try-scoring debutant in Bloemfontein, Andre-Hugo Venter was really only going to make the touring squad to Australia if there was another injury at hooker. The 22-year-old gave a good account of himself on debut against Portugal and is bound to earn more caps in the future, this Rugby Championship campaign is just too soon for him.

Ruan Venter and Quan Horn

Star Lions forward Ruan Venter won’t be downhearted by his non-selection for the tour after admitting that he was shocked by his call-up ahead of the clash against Portugal where he made his Test debut off the bench.

Frankly, Dixon has had slightly more chances and is deserving of his spot while Du Toit shows no signs of slowing down. He is another that we will see more of in the future.

Horn is another one who will be in the mix in the future and had a solid game on debut against Portugal, but is currently behind the likes of Willie le Roux and Aphelele Fassi in the full-back queue.

Faf de Klerk

Injury has once again sidelined Faf de Klerk and really the timing couldn’t be worse for the veteran number nine with the next crop of talent making a real fist of their opportunities.

De Klerk was below his usual high standards against Ireland having just returned from an injury he sustained during the Japan rugby season and when he was replaced by Grant Williams in the Tests, the Sharks man really impressed.

Injuries and suspensions

We will start with the latest pending suspension of Andre Esterhuizen with the brilliant Bok centre missing the tour after his second-minute sending-off against Portugal. Esterhuizen was sharp and effective against Wales but got it all wrong in his second cap of the year which may have costed him at least one start against Australia. He will now hope that he gets a shot at the All Blacks or may have to bide his time until the Boks head to Argentina.

Meanwhile, the injury list has grown for Erasmus with Franco Mostert and De Klerk added from the mid-year internationals.

They join the likes Jean Kleyn, Lood de Jager, Steven Kitshoff, Jaden Hendrikse, Herschel Jantjies, Canan Moodie, Edwill van der Merwe, and Damian Willemse on the sidelines while Jasper Wiese still has two games to go on his suspension.

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