How Japan-based players influenced Rassie's selection for France
REACTION: Springbok head coach Rassie Erasmus explained why he opted for consistency in selection for South Africa’s Nations Championship clash against France on Friday.
The only change from the side that defeated Italy 66-7 last weekend sees Wilco Louw promoted to the starting XV, with Thomas du Toit dropping to the bench.
There’s also a change to the replacement No.9 role, with Grant Williams dropping out of the matchday squad and Cobus Reinach taking his spot on the bench.
*Also read: Bok playmakers: Italy Test laid foundation for Le Bleus showdown
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Many expected more changes from Erasmus and his coaching team, but the Bok boss explained why he kept it to a minimum, and highlighted how the Japanese-based players helped make his task easier.
“If you look at the Italy game, it wasn’t the most physical match the guys played. Half of the [matchday] squad’s minutes are not too bad,” Erasmus said.
“Players like Manie [Libbok], Damian [De Allende], Jesse [Kriel], Kurt-Lee [Arendse] didn’t play a lot of rugby because they’re Japanese-based players.
“That includes Jasper [Wiese], Pieter-Steph [du Toit], Ruan [Nortje] and Malcolm [Marx]. They’re fairly fresh; some of them even only played 40 or 60 minutes.
“We even took Damian de Allende off against Italy to ensure his minutes are managed well, the same with Damian Willemse.
“We don’t feel the game against Italy was too taxing. We played before one o’clock in the afternoon and then flew to Paris on Saturday evening.
“France only played at nine o’clock, so people say it’s a six-day turnaround, but because we played early and the French late in the evening, it’s almost a seven-day turnaround [for us].”
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#TeamAnnouncement: Rassie makes two changes to Bok matchday squad for France showdown 👇#NationsChampionship #Springboks #SouthAfrica #France #FRAvRSA https://t.co/3kaHCbDlVY
— Rugby365 (@rugby365com) November 9, 2026
Erasmus also mentioned he selected the side, bearing in mind what he suspects Fabien Galthie might put out to battle the world champions.
“We felt the team were nicely in sync for a team that haven’t played a lot [recently], and we’ve analysed the French team and what we could possibly expect from them and who they might select.
“We think this is the best possible team to face France.
“Some players who missed out on selection were close to being in the matchday squad, like Grant [Williams], Canan [Moodie] and [Ntuthuko] Mchunu.
“Obviously Eben is back with us now. We’re not sure if he’ll get through today’s [Monday] training.”
Erasmus also provided an update regarding the fitness of Salmaan Moerat, who was a last-minute withdrawal ahead of the Italy Test after suffering from back spasms.
“Salmaan still has back spasms. To put Riley [Norton] into a game like this is a big step up, and Emmanuel [Tshituka] is knocking hard on the door, alongside Marco [Van Staden] and Zach [Porthen].
“So we think it’s a calculated selection and not a risk we are taking.”
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