The Springbok name squad to face Los Pumas in Durban with Rassie Erasmus making two personnel changes to his starting XV and rejigged the bench for Saturday’s match against Argentina at Kings Park.
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has made two personnel changes to his starting XV and rejigged the bench for Saturday’s match against Argentina at Kings Park.
Eben Etzebeth and Damian Willemse take over from the injured Lood de Jager and Aphelele Fassi at lock and fullback respectively, with Damian de Allende returning at inside centre.
The three changes on the bench, which again feature five forwards and three backs, are the inclusion of Boan Venter at prop, which sees Jan-Hendrik Wessels serve as the replacement hooker, while scrumhalf Morne van den Berg takes over from Grant Williams, who is nursing a niggle.
On the bench, Jan-Hendrik covers prop and hooker equally efficiently, so Boan gets another chance along with Morne.
Erasmus expected a monumental battle against Argentina, who are just two points behind the Boks on a tight Rugby Championship log.
“This is a vital match for both us and the Pumas, and if one takes into consideration that they beat New Zealand and Australia in the first four rounds of the competition, as well as the British & Irish Lions earlier in the season, there’s no doubt we’ll treat them the respect they deserve.
“They’ve made big strides in the last few seasons, and have an astute coach in Felipe Contepomi, so we know they are going to throw everything at us. Adding to that, they boast a strong forward pack and extremely talented backs, so they pose threats all around.”
The Bok coach, however, said the Boks were geared up for the challenge.
“We’ve had a good few training sessions since assembling last Thursday, and the players know what they’ll be up against.
“Similarly to us, Argentina are a tremendously proud and passionate team, and they give everything for their country. They know that two good results could place them in a decent position to win the competition, so it’s going to be a hard grind of a match.
“As things stand, any team could win the title, so we need to capitalise on the point-scoring chances we create and play for the full 80 minutes if we want to get the desired result.
Them in Durban three times, and they’ve beaten us once, and that, combined with their self-belief, means the historical results between the teams will have no significance going into the clash.
“They are also ranked sixth in the world ahead of the Wallabies, so we do not underestimate them.”
SPRINGBOKS – 15 Damian Willemse, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Canan Moodie, 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 Malcolm Marx, 1 Ox Nche.
Bench: 16 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 17 Boan Venter, 18 Wilco Louw, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Kwagga Smith, 21 Morne van den Berg, 22 Manie Libbok, 23 Andre Esterhuizen.
