Rassie loads up on rookies

TEAM ANNOUNCEMENT: Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus named four uncapped players in the team to face the Barbarians in Cape Town on Saturday.

It is South Africa’s opening match of the international season.

Asenathi Ntlabakanye (prop) and Vincent Tshituka (flank) have both been named in a relatively experienced starting lineup, while Marnus van der Merwe (hooker) and Neethling Fouche (prop) will feature alongside a few World Cup winners and seasoned campaigners on the replacements bench.

Another notable inclusion in the starting team was Lood de Jager, who will partner up with Jean Kleyn in the engine room.

The experienced lock is back for his first Test since the Springboks’ 2023 Rugby Championship clash against the All Blacks in New Zealand, which was his only Test in the last two seasons following a string of injuries.

Players from the Bulls players, as well as RG Snyman (lock), and Handre Pollard (flyhalf), only joined the squad last week following their involvement in the United Rugby Championship and Premiership Finals.

As a result, only Bulls utility forward Jan-Hendrik Wessels has been included in the match-23 from this group of players.

The squad assembled in Cape Town on Sunday after two weeks of training in Johannesburg and started their on-field match preparations on Monday.

They were also joined by utility forward Pieter-Steph du Toit, who has recovered from his injury, taking the size of the squad to 46 players.

Many of Erasmus’ combinations are tried and tested, with Aphelele Fassi, Cheslin Kolbe and Kurt-Lee Arendse joining forces in the back three, while double World Cup-winning centres Damian de Allende and Jesse Kriel will look to make their presence felt in the midfield.

Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Morné van den Berg will dictate play at halfback.

Erasmus opted for a loose trio of Jean-Luc du Preez, Tshituka, and captain Siya Kolisi, while Franco Mostert and Kwagga Smith will join up with Van der Merwe, Wessels, and Fouche as the replacement forwards in a split of five forwards and three backs – Cobus Reinach, Manie Libbok, and Andre Esterhuizen – on the bench.

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“We’ve said over the last few weeks that this match will provide the ideal opportunity to get the Japanese-based players and a few other players back into full match-mode for the mid-year Tests, while we also have the opportunity to see first-hand how a few of the newer players in the squad perform at this level, so we are excited to see what this group can do,” said Erasmus.

“With a handful of players having participated in the URC Grand Final and Handre in the Premiership Final, they lost out on over a week of training, so it was our plan from the outset to select players who we have been working with for the last few weeks and who are already functioning well within our structures.

“That said, we are planning to rotate our squad throughout the season to manage the players, and we are pleased with the depth we have within this group.”

Commenting on the four uncapped players in the matchday team, Erasmus said: “They have all slotted into our systems really well and have a good understanding of what we want to do in this match, while it also presents us with a fantastic opportunity to see how they measure up against a handful of experienced players in the Barbarians team.

“This may not be an official Test match, but we are approaching it as such, and a good result will hopefully set us on course for an exciting season.

“Asenathi, Vincent, Neethling, and Marnus have all been impressive at training and for their respective franchises this season, and we hope to see them replicate those quality performances in this match.”

Erasmus was also pleased to welcome De Jager back after an extended stint on the sidelines.

“Lood is in great form and hopped straight back into the thick of things with the intensity and work rate that we are used to seeing him deliver, and we are thrilled to see him and players like Faf [de Klerk] and Sacha [Feinberg-Mngomezulu] who missed a large chunk of last season back from injury.”

Looking ahead at the Barbarians game, Erasmus said: “A whole lot of players in this squad have played for the Baabaas, and I’ve also coached them before, so we have an idea of what to expect from them.

“They don’t have much time to train together as a group, but if one looks at the calibre of players they have announced so far and the history between the teams over the years, we know it’s going to take a top-class effort to get the desired result.

“That said, we are pleased with how our preparations are going, and our focus in this match will be to get our structures and systems in place for the Test matches coming up. So, this is a vital game for us.”

With the Barbarians being a composite team, no Test caps will be awarded for the match.

The clash against the Barbarians will be followed by two Tests against Italy (on July 5 and 12) in Pretoria and Port Elizabeth, respectively, and Georgia in Nelspruit on July 19 in the mid-year Tests.

South Africa: 15 Aphelele Fassi, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Morné van den Berg, 8 Jean-Luc du Preez, 7 Vincent Tshituka, 6 Siya Kolisi (captain), 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Jean Kleyn, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Ox Nche.
Replacements: 16 Marnus van der Merwe, 17 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 18 Neethling Fouche, 19 Franco Mostert, 20 Kwagga Smith, 21 Cobus Reinach, 22 Manie Libbok, 23 Andre Esterhuizen.

Date: Saturday, June 28
Venue: Cape Town stadium
Kick-off: 17.10 (15.10 GMT)
Referee: AJ Jacobs
Assistant referees: Christopher Allison and Stephan Geldenhuys
TMO: Egon Seconds