The Springboks have been boosted by the return of a champion lock ahead of Saturday’s Rugby Championship clash with Argentina at Twickenham.
Lood de Jager comes in as cover for Franco Mostert, who stayed behind in South Africa following a family bereavement.
The 31-year-old brings over 60 Test caps’ worth of experience and is fully fit again after shaking off the niggle he picked up during the Boks’ record 43-10 victory over the All Blacks in Wellington earlier this month.
Rassie Erasmus’ men touched down in London on Monday morning, brimming with confidence after back-to-back demolition jobs against New Zealand and Argentina.
They head into the decider at the top of the standings, one point clear of the All Blacks, with everything to play for in pursuit of a first-ever back-to-back Rugby Championship crown.
This is a massive game, and we have no doubt Argentina will come out guns blazing,” Erasmus said. “But at the same time, we have a chance to win the competition back-to-back for the first time in history, so we have all the motivation we need this week.”
The Boks will enjoy a recovery day before resuming training on Tuesday, when Erasmus will also confirm his match squad for the Twickenham blockbuster.
After the Cheslin incident, Sacha put in the long kick, chased, and scored himself. Then, after we gave away the penalty try, he took control again – held the ball through multiple phases into first-half injury time and wriggled over himself. It was as if he took responsibility for the team in his own hands.”
His cross-kick to Cheslin [early in the second half] was so precise Kolbe didn’t need to break stride. Early on he grubbered, regathered, kicked again – we could have scored there too. He sees space so well.”
