VIDEO: Rassie says Barbarian mindset can leave 'mental scars'
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus will avoid sending the wrong message when he names his side to face the Barbarians in Cape Town next weekend.
Erasmus, speaking at a media briefing this week, likened the friendly against the Barbarians to a Test match and explained it would be a mistake not to pick a strong team for that encounter.
The Bulls players, including Handre Pollard, joined the Springbok camp on Monday evening.
Erasmus explained it was a challenge to get everyone on the same page, but they all went through their fitness tests on Tuesday, and from Thursday, everyone would be on the same page.
Following the Barbarian game next weekend, the Boks face Italy (twice) and Georgia in preparation for their defence of the Rugby Championship against Argentina, Australia, and New Zealand.
Asked if he thinks the so-called ‘weaker’ teams will be good enough preparation, the coach dismissed that thought.
“A lot of people will assume that, but it would be a slap in the face of those teams,” the coach said.
“I coached the Barbarians in 2018 when they beat Argentina, and we had a lot of Springbok players in that side.
“The names I am seeing in this Barbarians team are going to be a great Test for us.
“It will be tough enough, and it is in Cape Town, so there are no altitude [issues],” he added.
Pieter-Steph du Toit will only join up with the squad in Cape Town next week, and he will be assessed then, while new incomer Boan Venter belatedly joined the camp in Johannesburg this week, which rules him out of the Barbarian game.
Erasmus said last week he doesn’t intend to use the Bulls players, and others like Pollard, Bath’s Thomas du Toit, and Leinster’s RG Snyman in the Barbarians game.
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“Those players won’t play the Barbarians game as we have been trying a few new things.
“It’s a bit of a slippery game, and we wanted the game.
“We are a team that loves to analyse the opposition and individual players, and we will always do that to find out where their strengths and weaknesses are.
“Obviously, we can’t do that with a Barbarian team, but there will be individuals.
“We will play really structured, our way, and get through the game without some mental scars, because that is something that normally happens because you are also in the Barbarian mindset.
“But we have to be careful about how we approach these first games.
“The moment you say you’re going to play around a little bit with selection for the Barbarians, you give the wrong message.
“That’s why we want to pick a pretty strong team. It’s not a Test match, but it’s going to be an excellent spectacle, I believe.
“I’m not sure what the weather in Cape Town will be like, but the game will definitely be of Test-match intensity, with a lot of pressure.”
