Rassie sticks with winning recipe
NEWS: Seventeen players will get together in Port Elizabeth on Friday, when they will start their preparations for the final two Tests in the Rugby Championship.
The Springboks play the Wallabies in the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium next Saturday, September 29, and a week later against New Zealand at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria.
Bok coach Rassie Erasmus confirmed that the squad will be further bolstered on Saturday when a number of other players have concluded their provincial duty in the Currie Cup.
“We are still keeping an eye on a number of players who we would like to involve in the coming weeks, but we would first like to see them get through their provincial matches this weekend,” said Erasmus.
It was also confirmed that Damian De Allende (centre), Lukhanyo Am (centre) and Makazole Mapimpi (wing) will not feature in the two home Tests after they were ruled out due to injury.
Furthermore, Willie le Roux (fullback) and Francois Louw (loose forward) have returned to their English clubs after the pair featured in the Springboks’ four tournament matches to date. They will not feature in the two home Tests.
South African squad – preliminary:
Forwards: Pieter-Steph du Toit, Eben Etzebeth, Steven Kitshoff, Siyamthanda Kolisi, Frans Malherbe, Malcolm Marx, Franco Mostert, Tendai Mtawarira, Rudolph Snyman, Warren Whiteley.
Backs: Francois de Klerk, Aphiwe Dyantyi, André Esterhuizen, Elton Jantjies, Cheslin Kolbe, Jesse Kriel, Handré Pollard.
