Springboks team: Rassie Erasmus makes THREE last minute changes for All Blacks showdown
Springboks Deon Fourie and Malcolm Marx.
Rassie Erasmus has made another late change to his matchday 23 for the all-important Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry Test match against the All Blacks in Cape Town.
On Friday, the Springboks head coach made two alterations on the eve of the Test match, with Handre Pollard withdrawing through injury.
Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu was subsequently elevated to the starting line-up, with Manie Libbok included on the bench while Erasmus opted to replace Kurt-Lee Arendse on the wing with Cheslin Kolbe, who was cleared to feature against New Zealand.
Less than an hour before kick-off of the second Test, SA Rugby confirmed that the front-rowers that were initially named on the bench would be in the starting XV. That means that Gerhard Steenekamp, Deon Fourie and Thomas du Toit will now start the match while Malcolm Marx, Ox Nche and Wilco Louw will come off the bench. Fourie now becomes the oldest player to ever represent the Springboks.
The remainder of the team remains unchanged, while the All Blacks have not made any late changes.
Springboks v All Blacks, LIVE BLOG: Coverage of the Greatest Rivalry Test in Cape Town
Final teams for Springboks v All Blacks in Cape Town
Springboks: 15 Damian Willemse, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Ethan Hooker, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (c), 5 Ruan Nortje, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Thomas du Toit, 2 Deon Fourie, 1 Gerhard Steenekamp
Replacements: 16 Malcolm Marx, 17 Ox Nche, 18 Wilco Louw,, 19 Lood de Jager, 20 Andre Esterhuizen, 21 Cameron Hanekom, 22 Morne van den Berg, 23 Manie Libbok
All Blacks: 15 Damian McKenzie, 14 Will Jordan, 13 Quinn Tupaea, 12 Jordie Barrett, 11 Leroy Carter, 10 Ruben Love, 9 Cam Roigard, 8 Ardie Savea (c), 7 Luke Jacobson, 6 Simon Parker, 5 Tupou Vaa’i, 4 Fabian Holland, 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 George Bower
Replacements: 16 Asafo Aumua, 17 Xavier Numia, 18 Fletcher Newell, 19 Patrick Tuipulotu, 20 Peter Lakai, 21 Kyle Preston, 22 Anton Lienert-Brown, 23 Josh Moorby
Venue: DHL Stadium, Cape Town
Date: Saturday, 29 August, 2026
Kick-off: 17:10 (local SAST), 16:10 (UK), 17:10 (France), 17:10 (South Africa), 01:10 (23 August, AEST), 03:10 (23 August, New Zealand), 12:10 (Argentina), 00:10 (23 August, JST), 11:10 (EDT)
How to watch: Sky Sports (UK and Ireland), Sky Sport / Sky Sport Now (New Zealand), SuperSport (South Africa), Stan Sport / Nine Sport (Australia), RugbyPass TV (USA), Premier Sports (Canada), WOWOW (Japan), ESPN Sur (Central/South America and Caribbean)
Referee: Angus Gardner (RA)
Assistant Referees: Karl Dickson (RFU), Sam Grove-White (Scotland)
TMO: Brett Cronan (Australia)
FPRO: Eric Gauzins (FFR)
READ MORE: Opinion: Career-defining Test awaits Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, not redemption
