Team Talk: Bok pack primed to attack France from the outset

OPINION: Rassie Erasmus’ decision to favour a stronger set-piece combination should improve the Springboks’ chances of building an early lead against France in Paris.

On Monday, Erasmus announced his match 23 ahead of the Test against France in Paris on Friday.

Also Read: Rassie makes two changes to Bok matchday squad

Tighthead prop Wilco Louw will start ahead of Thomas du Toit, while Cobus Reinach replaces Grant Williams on the bench.

Essentially, Erasmus has made one personnel change ahead of the most important game of the Nations Championship.

And after scoring 66 points and nine tries against Italy in Turin, this particular Bok combination will head into the battle against France with confidence and momentum.

Much has been made about the continuity in selection, but there are some key differences between this match 23 and the combination that won 32-17 in Paris last November – more on this in a moment.

It was interesting to listen to Erasmus’ explanation for this week’s selections.

While the Bok coach is expecting an almighty physical challenge, he suspects that France – who are missing a host of key players – may attempt to move South Africa around the park with their high-tempo running approach as well as their multi-layered kicking game.

That said, it remains to be seen whether France can go toe to toe with the Boks at the set-pieces and gainline as they did in 2025.

Last year, the French pack included juggernauts such as Thibaud Flament and Emmanuel Meafou in the second row, and ultimately a group of players with the ability to maintain a high standard of intensity from minute one to 80.

Now that Flament, Meafou and a handful of other forwards have been ruled out of the next clash, the hosts are unlikely to be at their physical best.

At Monday’s press conference, Erasmus noted the strength of France’s kicking game and how it has compromised the Bok defence in the past.

But given that first-choice fullback Thomas Ramos and two outstanding flyhalf options in Romain Ntamack and Matthieu Jalibert are unavailable, one wonders whether France will execute that kicking game to the same telling effect.

On Monday, a local journalist suggested that the Boks will head into Friday’s game as favourites because of France’s lengthy injury list.

Erasmus then proceeded to unpack the Boks’ own injury situation.

The Boks have travelled north without World Cup winners such as Frans Malherbe, Trevor Nyakane, RG Snyman, Kwagga Smith, Cheslin Kolbe, André Esterhuizen, Handré Pollard and Deon Fourie.

Eben Etzebeth and Salmaan Moerat are currently on tour, but are unavailable for selection this week.

It says a lot for Erasmus’ long-term development strategy that the Boks will head into Friday’s game as favourites – in the eyes of the local press and many others – in spite of those absences.

Even France – who have developed a lot of players over the past few seasons while winning tournaments like the Six Nations – don’t boast the same depth as South Africa.

There are other reasons, of course, why the Boks may be even stronger this Friday than they were in last year’s match in Paris.

France made an encouraging start to the 2025 clash, and led 14-13 at half-time.

The contest was an arm-wrestle for the better part of 60 minutes, before the Boks raced clear in the dying stages to win by an emphatic 15-point margin.

Erasmus and his coaching team will have reflected on last year’s performance before selecting this week’s team.

They will demand an improvement on that first-half display this Friday.

They will want the Bok forwards to dominate from the outset and put the French scrum and line-out under pressure, and they will want the starting XV to convert early chances into points.

Perhaps this is why Louw, South Africa’s premier scrummaging tighthead, has been backed to start.

Lood de Jager has retained his place at No.4 and will have a key role to play at the line-outs and mauls.

With France missing so many frontline players, the Boks will believe that the hosts are there for the taking in these departments, especially in the first half.

The big question is whether the Boks can land a few early blows and then complete a knockout in the second stanza.

Last year, Erasmus picked Louw, Ruan Nortjé, Snyman and the hybrid Esterhuizen on a formidable six-two bench.

All the pressure was on the Boks at the break, yet the Bomb Squad proceeded to win the second half 19-3.

This year, the Bomb Squad is operating without Snyman and Smith. Esterhuizen, who has become a key piece in the match 23 puzzle over the past two seasons, is recently down with injury.

Erasmus has moved Thomas du Toit to the bench this week, as he feels that the Boks will need his mobility and breakdown prowess in the latter stages of this particular contest.

Erasmus expects the game to open up in the second stanza, and it is here where the skills of rookies like Paul de Villiers and Cameron Hanekom may also come to the fore.

The Boks may need their more experienced players to keep the team on task, which is why veterans such as Franco Mostert and Reinach are also included on the bench.

If everything goes to plan as it did last week, Erasmus may have room to experiment with different combinations in the closing stages.

This may also allow the Bok coach to manage the game minutes of some of the senior players – Damian de Allende, Damian Willemse, Malcolm Marx and Jasper Wiese, to name a few – ahead of the next match against Ireland.

The plan, of course, hinges on a powerful and clinical start.

While the Boks are unlikely to be as dominant as they were in Turin last week, the opportunity is certainly there to force a depleted France side onto the back foot from the outset.