Rassie outlines plan for excluded stalwarts
REACTION: Springbok head coach Rassie Erasmus explained the way forward for several stalwarts who missed out on the selection for the second in-person alignment camp.
Erasmus named several uncapped players, including Sibabalwe Mahashe and Zekhethelo Siyaya, who will attend their first Bok alignment camp.
Notable absentees include Eben Etzebeth, Aphelele Fassi, Ethan Hooker and Cobus Reinach, to name a few who are unavailable due to injury.
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Erasmus clarified the pathway for those players missing out due to injury and explained his goals and objectives for the uncapped players in the squad.
“This is an exciting group of players, and it’s been pleasing to see them make their presence felt in the United Rugby Championship and during their teams’ Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup campaigns this season,” said Erasmus.
“This camp will be a good opportunity to expose those invited to our setup and the standards expected of the national coaches.
“We’re looking forward to involving Sibabalwe [Mahashe], Zekhethelo [Siyaya], Andre-Hugo [Venter], Embrose [Papier], Francke [Horn], and Henco [van Wyk] at this camp as we continue to build our squad depth.”
Erasmus added: “There are several players who are not currently fit to play, and we look forward to seeing them back in action in the near future, knowing they have a good sense of how the team operates and what will be expected of them when they return.”
Adding context to the camp, Erasmus said: “It’s important to be clear about the objective of this alignment camp, and that is to expose these players to our environment, our standards, and the way we operate.
“The players who will not be present, whether through injury or workload, remain in our plans, and each one of them is on his own path with his own set of timelines.
“This week will give us the chance to align those who are fit and firing now with the way we want to operate, so that when an opportunity arises either this year or further down the line, they are ready to step up and deliver at international level.”
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